So Not the End of the World
by MrDrP
Summary: Graduation really isn't the end of everything! Instead, it's just the beginning for Kim and Ron, their families, friends, and foes. COMPLETE
1. Commencement

**A/N**: Welcome, dear readers, to _So Not The End of the World! _Just because there won't be a Season 5 of _KP_, doesn't mean the story of Kim, Ron, and the rest of the gang has to come to an end. So, sit back, get a Slurpster and some nacos, make yourself comfortable, and prepare to join our intrepid heroes for an adventure chock-full of new sitches.

* * *

As always, thanks to campy for his beta- and proofreading assistance.

The MrDrP Guarantee to Readers: Leave a review, get a reply.

Finally, if you saw it on KP, it belongs to Disney.

* * *

I.

All was silent. An otherworldly stillness, disturbed only by the breeze that gently lifted the young woman's auburn hair and rustled her tattered robe, enveloped the broken heart of the city where two teens stood, surrounded by the havoc wrought by the alien invasion: shattered buildings, toppled machines of destruction, scorched pavement, scattered debris. But at that moment, neither gave thought to the wreckage about them – all that mattered to her was him and to him, her.

Kim reveled in the feel of Ron's large, gentle hands on her back, losing herself in his comforting embrace, one that seemed all the more tender in light of what she'd just seen him do. Ron in turn smiled and relaxed, knowing that his Best Friend Girl Friend was safe, that when she needed him most, he had indeed had her back.

"You were awesome," she murmured.

"Just following the lead of my badical GF," he said warmly.

"As if," she said as she pulled back just a bit, cocked her eyebrow, and smirked. "I don't glow blue and levitate."

"Well, not everyone can be the Monkey Master," he said with a serene smile that confirmed for her that something remarkable had indeed happened to her BF. "But then again," he added, drawing her away from her musings, "Nobody kicks villain booty with mad style while looking mighty fine the way you do."

Kim pecked Ron on the cheek. "Good comeback," she said.

"Well, I am da comeback kid," he said cockily.

"Don't push it, Monkey Master" she japed fondly before leaning in to give Ron another buss.

"Okay, that's enough kissy-face," Shego said as she approached the two heroes.

"I must agree," Drakken said as he landed the hovercraft. "These teens today. It's PDA this, PDA that. Why, if I had tried this kind of thing when I was their age …"

"The girl would have slapped you upside the head and Mama Lipsky would have had a heart attack," Shego interjected.

Kim and Ron both noticed the surprisingly playful smile on Shego's face as she delivered her zinger. Drakken, of course, did not and responded accordingly.

"Is that the kind of respect I get after saving the world?" he wailed.

"Dude, you admitted it!" Ron said brightly.

"What?" Drakken replied.

"You saved the world," Ron said.

"Did not," Drakken said.

"Did too," Ron replied.

"I did not," Drakken protested.

"Ron's right, Drakken," Kim said admiringly. "You so did say you saved the world!"

"Nnnnnggggg," the blue-skinned scientist growled in frustration. "Fine. I did. But let us say nothing more of it."

"Uh, why not?" Ron asked. "Saving the world's a good thing."

"For you two, perhaps," Drakken retorted. "But I have a reputation to maintain! If anybody finds out about this, my evil street cred is shot! Of course," the mad scientist added as he began to rub his chin, "my mad genius skillz would finally be recognized as da bomb."

"Okay, Doctor D, that's enough trying to be hip," Shego groaned.

"Oh, so I see you're still in charge?" Drakken complained.

Kim and Ron shared a knowing look. Then he gazed skyward and she nodded. Ron bent his knees, slipped one arm under his girlfriend's legs and the other behind her as she wrapped her arms around his neck, then fired up his jet pack.

"Whoa! Wait a minute!" Shego snapped as she saw Ron's boosters ignite. "You're still going to leave us with this mess?"

"You don't want me to miss graduation, do you?" Kim asked sweetly as she and her BFBF gently rose from the pavement.

Shego was about to protest when she had visions of being subjected to the puppy dog pout for the second time that day. "Fine, whatever," she relented. "But if I were you," she said to Ron, "I'd lose the space suit unless you're looking for a run-in with the fashion police."

"Lose the suit? Are you kidding? The Rondo is doing the diploma stroll in style!" he replied with enthusiasm before he and Kim flew off in the direction of Middleton High School.

II.

Shego shook her head in bemusement as she watched the receding figures of the two teens. Her attention was soon called back to Earth by the voice of her longtime employer.

"You know, Shego, this is rather funny," Drakken observed.

"Excuse me?" she replied incredulously as she took in the devastation surrounding her. "Have you finally lost it?"

"No, I have not 'lost it'," he said sharply before relaxing a bit. "It's just that, well, if these aliens hadn't shown up, I might have actually succeeded in taking over the world."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Behold," he said grandly, sweeping his arm before him.

Shego looked around and realized her boss may have had a point. If the Panzer pansies could defeat highly advanced alien technology, then it was highly doubtful there was anything on Earth that could have stopped them.

"Okay, I'll give you that one, Doctor D. Too bad about your timing."

Shego noticed the gleam in Drakken's eyes.

"Oh no," she said. "You're not going to …"

"Why not? Second time's the charm they always say," he replied. "I can get my mad genius props for saving the world and then my supervillain props for taking it over. Talk about having your cake and eating it, too!"

Shego considered that for a moment, then she had an epiphany.

"No," she said firmly. "No way. Uh uh. You are not doing this."

"What?" he asked, unable to hide his incredulity.

"You heard me," Shego said. "No."

"Don't tell me a little dust-up with some aliens has made you go soft?" Drakken asked. "I'm disappointed. I thought you were made of sterner stuff."

Shego rolled her eyes. "Aliens don't bother me. Stoppable, however, does."

"The sidekick?" Drakken asked incredulously. "You can't be serious."

Shego sighed. "Doc, I don't know where you were but Kimmie's boy toy turned the sky dark, levitated, glowed blue, and then took out our two nine-foot-tall pals in less time than it would take you to say 'zowie'."

Drakken blinked twice. "He really did that?"

"Yeah, so here's what I see happening if you try to take over the world right now. Kimmie's going to come after you."

"And with an army of mutant plants at my command I'll have her where I want her!" he crowed. "I've seen that Kim Possible can be defeated!"

"Okay, so let's say your little flower friends stop her; don't know that they can, but let's just say they do," she said. "Next thing you know, Stoppable is going to do that monkey thing of his and lay a world of hurt on you that you will never get over."

Drakken thought about what Shego had said before his face lit up. "Oh, I know what this is! You are going soft!"

"Hey! Watch it!" she snarled.

"Admit it, Shego!" he said tauntingly. "You liked working with Kim Possible and her sidekick! You want to be a hero again."

Shego's hands flared.

"You know I like being evil," she said. "Stupid's another matter."

Drakken looked at his long-time colleague in villainy. The two glared at one another uncomfortably. Suddenly, everything seemed so confusing.

"You're serious," he finally said, conceding that she'd been speaking in earnest.

"Oh yeah," she replied.

"Fine. I won't take over the world," he groused. "So if global domination is out of the question, what's next?"

"Radio talk show?" she gibed.

"Very funny," he said.

Shego grinned, then looked thoughtfully towards the horizon "Look, I don't know, okay? Why don't we go chill somewhere and give it some thought. I know of a pretty swank spa in Greece where we can hang."

Drakken seemed intrigued.

"Do you think I can get a kelp wrap there?" he asked.

"Oh yeah, the whole nine yards," she said. "Mud baths, massages, saunas. You name it."

"Well, that knot in my back has been bothering me like the Dickens," Drakken mused. "Okay, Greece it is," he said as Shego leapt into the hover car. "I have one condition, however."

"What?" she asked.

"Whatever we ultimately decide to do," he said, "I want my fair share!"

III.

Kim and Ron's high spirits were quickly dampened as they flew over the wreckage of their hometown. The remains of the Lorwardian walkers were everywhere.

"Man, this tanks," Ron said.

"Yeah," Kim agreed.

They were flying in silence, taking in the cracked pavement, crushed cars, broken buildings and houses, when a woman ran out from one of the houses. Moments later a man and two children joined her.

"Look!" the woman cried as she pointed at the teens. "It's Kim Possible!"

Ron, hearing the cry as they flew overhead, banked and turned back.

"What are you doing?" Kim asked.

"Kimbo, they need their hero," Ron answered.

"As long as I get to keep mine," she said.

"I don't see what this has to do with your dad," he said, clearly befuddled.

Kim rolled her eyes, smiled. "I was talking about you."

Stunned that Kim actually thought of him as her hero, Ron lost his focus – and sight of where he was going. Soon he was heading directly for a large maple.

"Ron!" Kim yelled. "Watch out!"

"Whooooooaaaa!" he cried out as he swerved and missed the tree's crown by inches. Grinning sheepishly, he landed in the family's yard.

It wasn't long before others in the neighborhood saw the visitors and began streaming out into the street, surrounding the two teens.

"Is it over?" one man asked.

"Dude, it is so over!" Ron said.

Cheering broke out and people began mobbing Kim, quickly shoving Ron aside. The ecstatic, growing crowd began chanting her name. Ron watched with pride as his girlfriend was feted.

Kim, however, was not pleased as her BF was pushed further and further away from her.

Finally, she had had enough. "Stop. This. Now!" she demanded.

The stunned admirers did as instructed. Kim then purposefully strode through the throng towards Ron. When she reached him she took his hand.

"Who's that?" one person asked.

"Isn't that Wade?" another said.

"Nah, Wade's the computer guy," someone said.

"Maybe it's Rufus?"

"Nuh uh!" the naked mole rat said as he popped out of his human's pocket.

"Rufus!" the crowd cheered, clearly still uninterested in Ron.

Kim was furious now. "Hello! This is Ron," she yelled. "Ron Stoppable, my partner and my boyfriend …"

"Gee," a woman said to a friend, fortunately out of Kim's range of hearing, "I thought she was dating that Dexter fellow from the Oh Boyz …"

"… If it weren't for him," Kim continued heatedly, "I wouldn't be here right now!"

"Uh, Kim, calm down," Ron urged.

"No!" she said turning on him. "I am so not calming down. I'm tired of people ignoring you, not giving you credit when you deserve it."

"KP, it's all cool," he said, taking her hands in his.

Kim shook her head. "No, it isn't. And the worst part is, part of it's my fault!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You remember that magazine we saw in the airport?"

Ron nodded as recalled the latest issue of _Humans_.

"You should have been on that cover with me."

"Well, I was, in a sense, kind of," he said, recalling how part of him appeared off to the side. "Sort of."

"I mean with me. By my side," Kim said heatedly before her tone became gentler. "The news coverage has always been about me, and I've never said a word."

"Sha," he said, dismissing her. This wasn't something he thought they should be getting worked up about. Being ignored by the media only bothered Ron when he began to let his mind wander and he entertained the possibility that just like the press, Kim would forget about him, too.

"Don't 'sha', me, Ron Stoppable," she said, jabbing him in the chest. "You remember that junk about how you didn't want to hold me back from going places?"

"Well …"

She cupped her boyfriend's face in her hands. "Ron, I'd never have gotten to where I am without you."

"Really?" he replied, genuinely surprised.

"Yes, really," Kim said. "If I've learned anything the past 24 hours it's not that I can do anything, it's that we can do anything. Together, as a team, as a couple. And I'm so going to do everything I can to make sure everyone knows that …"

"Look, KP …" he said before being cut off by her lips, which elicited 'oohs' and 'aaahs' from the crowd.

The auburn-haired teen finally pulled away from her grinning, dazed boyfriend, and looked at the crowd, which began to cheer.

"Have I made my point?" she asked, her hands on her hips.

The crowd responded with a lusty cheer of "Kim and Don! Kim and Don!"

"Is my name really that hard to remember?" Ron asked once he'd emerged from his kiss-induced stupor.

"Well, at least it's a start," Kim said sympathetically as she squeezed her BF's hand.

"I guess so," Ron said. "So, you wanna go graduate?"

"Please and thank you," she said as she wrapped her arm around his neck, in anticipation of their flight to the high school.

IV.

"Kim Possible is a most redoubtable young person."

Nana Possible turned to see an urbane gentleman of about her age standing behind her.

"Yes, she is," Kim's grandmother replied.

"So is Ron Stoppable," the man added.

"He would have to be to keep up with Kimberly Ann," she said with a knowing smile. "How do you know them?"

"I am Senor Senior, Senior," he said with a dip of the head. "Your granddaughter has proven to be a most worthy adversary over the years."

"Adversary?" Nana's eyebrows arched. "You're not one of those supervillains she's always tangling with?" she asked, disapproval evident in her voice.

"I prefer to think of myself as but a poor, simple billionaire seeking something stimulating to do in his free time," he answered.

Nana did not look impressed.

"I can see where she gets her steel," Senor Senior added suavely.

"Kimberly Ann has been abducted by those awful aliens," Nana scolded. "I really don't think this is the time for you to be making a pass at me."

Senor Senior looked contrite and bowed slightly. "Forgive me if I allowed myself to be carried away; you, like your granddaughter, are a most formidable and impressive individual. My intention when approaching you was only to offer you encouragement during your time of trial."

Nana cocked an eyebrow, then crossed her arms. "I see," she said, sounding unconvinced. "So tell me: why is one of my granddaughter's foes at her graduation?"

With a courtly flourish, Senor Senior pointed in the direction of the stands. There sat Bonnie and Junior, huddled together. "Miss Rockwaller is my son's girlfriend."

"You're a father? You should be ashamed of yourself!" Nana scolded. "You should be setting a positive example for your son!"

"But I try," a genuinely surprised Senor Senior replied. "I make sure Junior knows that one should always be gracious to the hero before defeating him or her, that an evil laugh is not something to be taken lightly but requires dedication and many hours of practice –"

The doors to the gym flew open and Tara, followed by Jessica and Marcella, raced in. "Kim and Ron are back!" the effervescent blonde shouted excitedly.

The room fell silent as people registered what had just been reported, then erupted into loud cheering. Students, parents, friends, and teachers, quickly began streaming out to the parking lot, and watched as Ron landed with surprising grace and gently set down Kim.

"Spankin' landing, Captain Constellation," she said as she gave him a peck on the cheek.

Ron grinned. "Ah-boo—"

"Possible! Stoppable!" Steve Barkin, late of the nurse's office where he'd regained his composure (and some semblance of a sense of manhood) after reading back issues of _Mercenary Illustrated_, bellowed, interrupting the buss. "Until the two of you collect your diplomas, you are bound by Middleton High School regulations regarding Public Displays of Affection. Do I make myself clear?"

* * *

_To Be Continued …_


	2. Home Sweet Hole in the Ground

Thanks to SolarinStudio, RuLeZanG, daywalkr82, Comet Moon, Quathis, spectre666, Pharoah Rutin Tutin, whitem, CajunBear73, rufusforever, campy, Ran Hakubi, AtomicFire, Mr. Wizard, SassMasterGeneral, captainkodak1, lippy norwegian, Samurai Crunchbird, Danny-171984, Drakonis Aurous, Josh84, James W, jakndaxluver, The Incredible Werekitty, spedclass, Ron Heartbreaker, Bubbahotek, yvj, Shegofan, Shallow15, SlickNickShady, Akinyi, StarwarsKPgal71, Miss EJ, acosta perez jose ramiro, Lonestarr, wheathermangohanssj4, Desslock3, Molloy, Aero Tendo, Eddy13, TexasDad, mkusenagi2, johnrie18, bthecatslayer, and fatherfigure1 for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

Special thanks to campy for proofreading this chapter.

Leave a review, get a response.

If you saw it on _KP_, it belongs to Disney.

* * *

I.

The old woman watched the scene unfold: the two teens landing, the jubilant crowd surrounding them, Kim kissing Ron on the cheek, and Steve Barkin lecturing them.

She'd seen a lot over the years. She'd never yielded to her opponents and she was convinced she could actually smell fear. She'd been in the trenches for decades and knew what was important and what wasn't. Two kids kissing on school property definitely wasn't important, especially given what had just happened.

It was time to intervene.

"Give it a break," Cafeteria Lady said caustically to her fellow Middleton High employee. "We were just invaded by bug-eyed freaks from outer space and you're worried about PDA?"

"You know," noted Ron, "they weren't actually bug-eyed …"

"Ron …" Kim hissed as she elbowed her boyfriend. "So not the time."

Cafeteria Lady briefly glowered at the tow-headed teen, then smirked at Barkin, waving her hand dismissively at her colleague before she turned on her heel and walked off. Graduating seniors and family members and friends who'd studied at Middleton High in previous years stared goggle-eyed as the woman who'd inflicted so much gustatory cruelty left Steve Barkin standing speechless.

"Listen up, people," the all-purpose utility teacher bellowed at the seniors as he tried to reassert the authority that had just been undermined by the tough-as-nails food service worker. "Robe up and resume your places!"

The students quickly broke and went in search of their gowns and families, leaving Kim and Ron alone with Mr. Barkin.

"Possible, you may have saved the world, but your gown's a mess. Stoppable, you look like a low-budget extra from _Space Passage_. There are extra robes inside. I expect to see you wearing them," Barkin said to Ron and Kim before he stalked off.

Ron looked at Kim. "I kinda like your robe. The sash around the waist gives you a dangerous space warrior feminina kind of look."

"That's the weirdest compliment you've given me in a while," Kim said with a warm chuckle. "Thanks."

Ron just grinned, pleased that Kim had appreciated his words.

"You want my advice?"

Kim and Ron turned to see Cafeteria Lady, who proceeded to jab Ron in the chest.

"Stand your ground," she said. "Do what you want to do. Be yourself, not who others want you to be."

She then turned and stalked off.

"I so cannot believe we just got life advice from Cafeteria Lady," Kim said.

"Believe it, KP," Ron said. "Aliens invade, my monkey powers finally kick in, CL gives us advice."

"CL?" Kim asked skeptically. "And you two have been on a nickname basis since when?"

"Hey, I think she and I finally bonded," Ron answered. "It's a foodie thing."

"Riiiight," Kim said. "Come on," she added with a smile as she took Ron's hand. "Let's graduate before anything else happens."

II.

Ann and James Possible watched as their daughter embraced Steve Barkin, then collected her diploma. Noticing the expressions on the faces of the educator and student during the brief exchange that followed, a mother's ability to sense trouble was aroused. "Honey," Mrs. Dr. P asked her husband, "where are Jim and Tim?"

III.

Ron and Kim had shared hugs with their families, then each other, before Monique approached, insistent upon doing up her best girlfriend's hair before the traditional mortarboard toss. Ron, Ann, and James watched as an animated Kim walked off arm in arm with Monique.

Ron, who was slowly beginning to understand the fairer, wiser sex, also suspected Kim wanted to dish about Team Possible's latest adventure. He shook his head, bemused that he'd actually once felt Monique threatened his relationship with Kim. He could now appreciate, in part due to the strange sitch with the Attitudinated Shego earlier in the year, how important it was for Kim to have friends who were girls.

Ann's thoughts, meanwhile, turned to her other progeny. "James," she said to her husband, "I think I'm going to make sure the boys aren't getting into any trouble."

"The boys? In trouble?" he replied, before pausing. "Good idea."

After his wife had walked off, Mr. Dr. P turned to his daughter's boyfriend.

"Ronald, may I talk with you for a moment?"

"Sure, Doctor P. Whassup?"

"Congratulations," James said as he extended his hand.

"Thanks," Ron replied. "Hard to believe I finally got the ol' sheep dip."

"I think you mean 'sheepskin'," Mr. Dr. P said.

"Why would I want a sheepskin?" Ron asked. "Then again, I've been wondering why a football is called a pigskin; at least KP says it is. I'm still pretty sure it's a pig puck, and I am a jock, after all."

Kim's father cocked an eyebrow. "When Kim told you it was a pigskin, what did you do?" he asked.

"Dropped the subject. Kim was pretty convinced she was right and Momma didn't raise no fools, yup, yup," Ron said.

Mr. Dr. P shook his head and grinned. "Smart man," he observed before continuing, "Ronald, I want you to know how proud I am that you're my daughter's boyfriend. I'll never forget how determined you were to rescue Kim after she was abducted by those aliens."

Ron's face took on an unaccustomedly serious cast. "KP means the world to me, Doctor P. You can count on me always having her back."

"I know," James said as he rested his hand on the young man's shoulder. "Ronald, I have to confess, there were times when I've wondered about you and Kim dating …"

"It's the bling, sir, isn't it?"

"No, it's not the man jewelry, though I do hope I never see it again," James said with a shudder. "I'm a father," he continued in a more serious tone, "and I want what's best for my daughter." The Possible patriarch then paused. "I know you've had your challenges at school and that you still don't know where you're going to college or even if you're going to college …"

Ron's very recently acquired feelings of invincibility quickly ebbed as he felt both his inadequacies and his fears about the future begin to reassert themselves.

"… But that doesn't matter," James said, catching Ron by surprise. "A lesser man wouldn't have risked himself the way you did today. Or, to be honest, the way you have so many times in the past for Kim. Right now, I can confidently say that you are what's best for my daughter."

"You really mean that?" Ron said, moved by this vote of confidence.

"I do," James said with a warm smile. "I don't know what the future holds for you, but I hope it will always involve Kim."

"So do I," Ron said. "I can't imagine life without her."

"And I honestly don't think she can imagine life without you, either," James said as he rested a hand on Ron's shoulder. "Just remember that. Things are going to change for both of you and I suspect you'll both have some tough choices to make in the coming months."

"Yeah, I know," Ron said, not looking forward to the uncertainties that would have to be dealt with and the decisions that would have to be made. "It sure isn't going to be easy."

"Probably not," James said. "But don't forget: anything's possible for a Possible … and a Stoppable."

IV.

Jim and Tim, who were preparing to activate the Lorwardian laser again, looked up to see their mother looming over them.

"Boys, what have your father and I said about using dangerous alien technology?"

The tweebs looked at each other, considering the question, then grinned.

"Nothing?" Jim enthused. "Hicka bicka boo!"

"Hoosha!" Tim exclaimed.

The boys exchanged high fives, but then saw the dark expression on their mother's face.

"Uh, oh," Jim said.

"We're busted," Tim observed.

V.

"Are you sure you want to walk home, Kimmie? You've had an awfully long day," Mrs. Possible said as she waited for her husband, who was exchanging insurance information with Mr. Barkin.

"It's no big, Mom," Kim said. "I'd just like to get some fresh air with my BF."

"And there's no need to worry, Mrs. P," Ron said as he wrapped his arm around Kim. "If my badical GF gets tired, the Ronman can always give her a boost."

"Good one, Ronald," James, who'd walked up to the group just in time to hear the tow-headed teen's quip, said as he patted Ron's jet pack.

Kim rolled her eyes, shook her head, then smiled. "We'll see you back at the house."

The two newly minted graduates watched as their families climbed into their vehicles and drove off. Holding hands, Kim and Ron began walking home, following the route they'd taken so many times since their first day as freshmen. They noticed that the damage to their part of town was lighter than what they'd seen in the city center. They passed familiar landmarks: their old preschool, the local playground. It wasn't long before they turned the corner onto their street – and saw the debris pile that was all that remained of the only home Kim Possible had ever known.

VI.

"I cannot believe they did this," Kim growled when she saw the devastation down the block.

"That is sick and wrong," Ron commented.

Kim agreed with her BF's sentiment, and was about to say so, when she locked eyes with her mother, who was standing near the pile of rubble with the rest of her family and the Stoppables. The teen hero's anger was swiftly joined by concern and guilt as she saw the sorrow and loss written on her mother's face. Kim lost no time and took off in Ann's direction with Ron in tow. Soon, daughter and mother embraced, offering one another comfort and support.

Nana Possible, watching, turned to Ron's mother.

"Do you think I could use your kitchen?" she asked Mrs. Stoppable. "I think some lemon squares are in order."

Mrs. Stoppable nodded. "I think that's a wonderful idea."

The two families soon retired to the Stoppables'. Nana disappeared into the kitchen while Slim went in search of a telephone to check in on Joss, who was back in Montana, leaving everyone else in the living room.

Silence enveloped them. Finally, Kim spoke. "I'm sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" Jim asked.

"Hello!" she snapped at her brother. "Our house was vaporized because of me!"

"KP, you don't know that," Ron said.

She glared at her boyfriend. "Oh, and it was just coincidence that the aliens who kidnapped me also blew up my home?"

"Hey, I was just saying …"

"Well, don't!" she ordered. "Mom, Dad, the tweebs, and yes, I, lost everything because of my run-in with Warmonga last fall. Earth was invaded because of me! How many other people are without a home tonight because of what I did? If I'd just stuck to babysitting, none of this ever would have happened."

"Honey, please don't second-guess yourself," Ann said. "There's no way anyone could have predicted this."

"Your mother's right, dear," Nana said as she came into the living room carrying a tray of treats.

"Kimmie-cub," James added, "saving the world is what you do. We wouldn't have it any other way. Besides," he joked, "your mother's been wanting to remodel the kitchen."

"But –"

Kim's protest was cut off by her uncle. "But what?" Slim asked as he joined the gathering. "If'n you didn't do what you do, some varmint would have taken over the world a long time ago."

"Besides, you didn't lose everything," Jim said.

"Yeah, you've still got the Sloth," Tim added.

"What are you talking about?" a perplexed Kim said. "I saw the Sloth in the garage yesterday afternoon."

"Actually," Jim said smugly, "you saw a holographic projection."

"Your car's in Ron's garage. We outfitted the Sloth with a retractable roof!" Tim added with pride.

"Yeah, that way it will be easier for us to spy on you when you two go to the bluff overlooking Lake Middleton," Jim said. He and his brother then began making kissing sounds, which they followed with exaggerated gagging.

"You knew about this?" Kim said to Ron while the tweebs laughed.

"Yeah, it was supposed to be a Graduation present," he said sheepishly, now worried that he was in really deep trouble. "But I didn't know about the spying part!" Ron exclaimed before turning to Mr. Dr. P. "And I'm always a gentleman around KP! I swear! Tell him, Kim!"

Kim responded with an overly demonstrative kiss on his cheek while Mr. Dr. P just grinned.

"Thanks for the spankin' surprise," Kim said to Ron. "And sorry for harshing on you. This is all just so the drama. Forgive me?"

"'Sha," Ron replied, waving off Kim's concern. "As my badical girlfriend likes to say, 'no big!'"

Before Kim could say anything, Mr. and Mrs. Stoppable, who'd disappeared shortly after everyone had settled in, reappeared. "Okay, we're all set up," Mr. Stoppable said.

"Set up? For what?" James said.

"Well, you need somewhere to stay for now," Mrs. Stoppable explained. "You don't think we're going to let you stay in a shelter or hotel, do you? You're like family."

"I don't know what to say," Ann said as she dabbed at her eyes with her husband's tie before rising and hugging Ron's mother.

"There's nothing to say," Mrs. Stoppable said with a warm smile. "Now, James and Ann, you'll take the guest room, Nana, you'll stay in Ron's room, Slim –"

"Thanks, but I reckon I oughta get back to Montana," he said with a nod, glad he'd parked his bike on the street. "It's a long drive an' all and the longer'n I'm away, the more chance Joss has of a gittin' in trouble."

"Boys?" James asked knowingly.

"An' how! If'n she didn't have that stomach bug, there's no way I'da left her alone at the ranch."

"Well, thanks for coming," Mrs. Dr. P said as she embraced her brother-in-law. "It was great to see you."

"It was my pleasure," he said before he turned to Kim. "I'ma proud of you, young lady."

"Thanks, Uncle Slim," she said as she hugged him.

"You, too, son," he said to Ron. "You take care of her, now."

"Will do, sir," Ron said.

"Now you drive safely," Nana said sternly.

"Will do, Momma," Slim said.

"I so wish you didn't drive that motorcycle," she said disapprovingly. "It's so dangerous."

"Now wait just a darn second!" Slim retorted. "I'ma not going to take that from the lady who taught Baddie McNaddie everything he knows about jumpin' a motorbike over a canyon."

"Well, that was different," Nana said innocently.

Mrs. Stoppable watched the exchange with a bemused expression. "Would you like something for the road?" she asked Slim.

"I reckon I would. Thanks," he replied.

"Here, why don't we get something," Mr. Stoppable said as he led Slim to the kitchen.

"Now, where were we?" Mrs. Stoppable said to herself. "Oh that's right. Nana's in Ron's room. Kim, would you mind staying with Hana?"

Kim looked at Ron's sister, who interrupted her playtime with Rufus to beam at her. "Not at all," the teen hero said brightly.

"Jim, Tim, we'll put you in sleeping bags here in the living room. I'm sure Ron will let you play his video games."

"Hicka bicka boo," Jim said.

"Hoosha!" Tim added.

"Hey, where's Ron going to stay?" Jim wondered aloud.

"We'll set up a cot in the garage for Ronnie," Mrs. Stoppable said cheerily.

Ron gulped. Facing down nine-foot-tall invaders from another world was one thing; bunking with the garden gnome was going to be a wholly different matter …

_To Be Continued …_


	3. Travel Plans

Thanks to Ran Hakubi, Mr. Wizard, Comet Moon, Josh84, Ace Ian Combat, CajunBear73, StarwarsKPgal71, whitem, Iffert's Flame, campy, daywalkr82, johnrie18, Danny-171984, Samurai Crunchbird, Quathis, spectre666, spedclass, yvj, Mattk, Zaratan, Louis Mielke, JeanieBeanie33, lippy norwegian, Drakonis Aurous, Bubbahotek, Limby, RonHeartbreaker, Uru Baen, Akinyi, dataweaver, Molloy, Desslock3, Aero Tendo, .ninja, rollred2000, and Ultimate Naco Topping for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

As always, leave a review, get a response!

Special thanks to campy for proofreading

* * *

I.

Wade stumbled into his house. The tween was bone tired. He'd never actually pulled an all-nighter before and hoped never to pull one again. Still, when he considered why he was sleep-deprived, he had no regrets: helping Kim and Ron save the world (again) and watching his two closest friends graduate was worth losing a night's rest.

The young genius was about to stumble into his bedroom when a familiar maternal voice called after him. "Wade Load, just what do you think you're doing?" his mother asked.

"Going to bed?" he asked sheepishly, expecting to be chastised for being out all night.

"I don't think so," Mrs. Load said sternly.

"Look, Mom, I'm sorry I was out all night but Kim was abducted and then Ron –"

"That's why you need a good, hot meal, young man," Mrs. Load said seriously before her stern expression changed into one of warmth and pride. "If you're going to keep helping them save the world, you need to eat your three squares. Now you march yourself right into that kitchen and I'll whip you up some griddle cakes."

Wade smiled. Ron may have had Kim's back, and he may have had Kim and Ron's backs, but it was his mother who always had his back. "Thanks, Mom," Wade said as he gratefully headed to the kitchen to comply with his mother's order.

II.

The hover car had barely touched down before the bellhops appeared.

"Hmmpph," Drakken groused. "Why couldn't the henchmen ever move like that?"

"Because you didn't pay them?" Shego observed with a roll of her eyes.

"What are you talking about? They were on an incentive system. Once I took over the world they would get …"

"… New Jersey," Shego interjected. "Woo. Hoo. Extra hoo."

Drakken was about to say something about the Garden State's many unsung virtues when the concierge appeared. "Ms. Shego, so good to see you," said the elegant man who'd come out to greet his villainous guest and her companion.

"Thanks, Andreas," Shego said as she hopped out of the craft. "It's good to be back. This is my, uh …" she realized she wasn't sure how to describe Drakken. Boss? Friend?

"Surely you know me," the blue-skinned mad scientist insisted as he climbed out of his car. "Doctor Drakken!"

"Sorry, the name's not familiar," the hotelier said before he did a double-take. "Oh my, please forgive me. Of course I know you. Your work is legendary …"

"You see, Shego. My fame precedes me wherever I go!"

"… The liposuction you performed on Evangelina Jolly was exquisite!"

"L-liposuction?" Drakken sputtered.

Shego doubled over in laughter while her long-time colleague in evil twitched.

"Oh, thanks," Shego said as she clasped her hand on their host's shoulder. "I really needed that."

"I really needed that," Drakken mimicked. "Lippy …"

"Doc, give it a rest," she said with a surprisingly easy smile. "We're on vacation, remember?"

"You're right, Shego," Drakken said, snapping out of his momentary funk. "Let's get this party started!"

Shego and Drakken followed Andreas into the lobby of the exclusive resort. He consulted a large ledger, then looked up at his guests. "I have two lovely oceanfront rooms for you."

"Thanks," Shego said. As she signed the guest register, Drakken looked around the lobby of the five-star Hellenic Spa, taking in the sumptuous surroundings, which were a far cry from the rock-hewn lairs he usually frequented. Assuming nobody was looking, he surreptitiously slipped a pen into his coat pocket. Much to his discomfort, Shego deflty reached into his pocket, smirked at him, and handed him the purloined writing instrument so he could sign in to the spa. Grumbling, he looked at the paperwork proffered by the concierge. The would-be world conqueror's eyes bugged out when he saw the resort's rates.

"Shego!" he protested. "These prices are criminal!"

"Don't worry, Drakken, it's on me," she said.

Drakken blinked.

"Hey, you've treated me in the past," she explained. "It's my turn. Besides, it's the least I could do for the guy who saved the –"

"Do NOT say those words!" he hissed.

"World" she mouthed.

"Nnggggggg!" he fumed, his fists clenched and his teeth gritted.

For reasons she couldn't fully explain, Shego found Drakken's reaction endearing rather than annoying.

"Huh," she said to herself before she turned and followed the bellman to her room.

III.

"You are one spankin' BF," Kim said as she helped Ron set up the cot in the garage.

"Think nothing of it, Kimbo," he said, doing his best to mask his unease at the prospect of sharing quarters with the garden gnome.

"I'll do nothing of the sort," she retorted. "Mom's right: you shouldn't have to sleep out here. There really isn't enough room here for all of us."

"Maybe, but I just couldn't see you living under the same roof with Cousin Larry," Ron said. "I mean, there's only so much geek a bon-diggity teen hero can handle, after all."

Kim wrapped her arms around Ron's neck and smiled at him. "I see you've still got my back."

"Oh yeah," Ron responded as he placed his hands on the small of Kim's back.

"Don't think I don't know how hard this is for you," she said as she rested her head in the crook of his shoulder. "I know how you feel about the garden gnome."

Ron tensed. "Shhhhhh!" he urged.

"Excuse me?" Kim said, confused.

"Don't speak his name, KP. You don't want to get his attention. He might …"

Much to Ron's horror and Kim's frank surprise, the garden gnome slowly rose from the cement floor of the garage.

"Aiiiieeee!" Ron screamed. "It's alive!"

"Okay, this is most def weird," Kim observed. She activated her Kimmunicator; Wade's image instantly appeared.

"What up, Kim?" the young man said cheerfully.

"I know I should be checking in to see how your fam is, but we've got a seriously strange sitch here." To illustrate her point, she pointed the communications device at the hovering statuette so the tech guru could see for himself.

"Let me do a scan," Wade said as a blue beam emanated from the Kimmunicator. He frowned. "Sorry, Kim, but I don't know what's going on. There's no scientific explanation."

Ron pursed his lips. "Then that must mean there's an unscientific one."

Kim cocked an eyebrow at her BF. "That does make some sense, in a ferociously weird way."

"You want me to keep looking into this?" Wade asked.

"Please and thank you," Kim replied. "Talk with you later."

As Kim finished her conversation with Wade, Ron, screwing up some courage, advanced on the gnome, a rake in hand. "Okay, fly boy, we're ending this once and for all." He raised the lawn care implement over his head and was about to strike when the gnome began to spin violently. "That is sick and wrong!" a now agitated Ron yelped.

Kim, tweaked with the lawn ornament for upsetting her excitable boyfriend, lunged at the bearded sculpture, hoping to take the annoying object down. However, just as she was about to grab the gnome, it jinked, leaving her grasping at air. "You are so busted," she muttered as she glared at the small figure.

"Stoppable-san," the gnome said in a very familiar voice.

"Okay, that's different," Kim observed.

"Dude, that is not funny!" Ron snapped. "Haunting the garage is one thing, but impersonating Sensei is another."

"Stoppable-san," the gnome said again.

"Ron, maybe it is Sensei," Kim said.

"What? Oh no!" he wailed. "While we were stopping the aliens, Sensei was turned into the garden gnome!"

"Amp down, please and thank you," Kim said to Ron. "I think Sensei's using the gnome to talk to you."

"He is?"

"I am," Sensei said.

"Well, why not use the floaty image thing?"

"Because, as you noted in the Men's Room …"

Kim shot Ron a look. "You don't want to know," he whispered in reply.

"… Each time I do, I bring bad news," Sensei explained. "This time I wished to speak to you of other matters."

"You could have used the phone, you know," Ron said.

"I am sorry, but we lost our telephone service."

"Warhok and Warmonga?" Kim asked, imagining the damage the Lorwardians might have caused to the secret ninja school.

"No, Master Lunch Lady forgot to pay the telephone bill last month."

Kim and Ron exchanged an incredulous look and then sat down on the cot.

"So, whassup, Sensei?" Ron asked.

"You did well yesterday, Stoppable-san. The monkey power is indeed strong in you."

"Yeah, well, I had a good reason to step up my game," Ron said as he wrapped his arm around his girlfriend. Kim squeezed his hand in appreciation.

"And 'step it up' you did," Sensei agreed. "But now you must explore your new power, learn how to use it, how to control it, and not be controlled by it."

"Great. Let me guess," Ron said. "Instead of spending my summer chilling with my GF at Lake Middleton, you want me to come to Yamanuchi for some excruciating and at times seemingly pointless training."

"Indeed, I do," Sensei replied, ignoring Ron's sarcasm. "And I would like Possible-san to come, too."

"Me?" Kim asked, surprised.

"Yes, Possible-san, you. Stoppable-san's new powers will affect you as much as they do him."

"Look, Sensei," Ron said, "this is all great, but in case you haven't noticed, things are kind of a mess here. I'm sleeping in a garage with a garden gnome who's five hundred miles of bad road."

"Another reason for you to come to Japan, and soon," Sensei observed. "There are no evil lawn ornaments at Yamanuchi."

"Okay, you sold me," Ron replied. "When do we leave?"

"Ron!" Kim protested. "I can't just pick up and leave my family, not now."

Ron slapped his forehead. "Oooo. My bad," he said. "It's just that Mr. Garden Gnome here freaks me out!"

"Understatement much?" Kim said wryly as she rested her hand on her BF's shoulder. "Let me talk with Mom and Dad, 'kay?"

"'Kay," Ron said. "'Kay, Sensei?"

"'Kay," the ninja master agreed.

Ron rubbed the back of his neck. "Uh, Sensei, just one question: how do I get back in touch with you?"

"You will know how when the time comes," Sensei replied.

And with that, the gnome fell to the ground, shattering into a hundred pieces.

"Magical ninja powers rock! Man, I have gotta get me some of those!" Ron exulted while Kim looked pensively at the remains of the gnome. She then looked at her boyfriend and partner in fighting crime, wondering just what Sensei had in store for them and how it would relate to what she had witnessed the day before.

IV.

Upon returning home, Steve Barkin changed into a tan polo shirt and brown shorts. Feeling he was too wound up from the previous night's excitement to sleep, he decided to polish his spare green SUV -- ever since that unfortunate incident involving the Shriner go-carts, the mountain goats, and the so-called 'weather balloon' back in '87, he'd always had a second set of wheels at his disposal. Though Kim Possible's genius brothers had vaporized his beloved truck, Steve Barkin would still be driving around Middleton in gas-guzzling style.

The gruff teacher went to his garage and collected his automotive cleaning gear, then went out to the driveway and his vehicle. He was surprised to see a host of newly minted graduates, with Tara at the front, waiting for him.

"How could you cancel our graduation party?" she heatedly demanded to know.

Barkin was startled by the blonde cheerleader's aggressive attitude but quickly recovered.

"Municipal regulation 105-B, section C, paragraph 12: In case of alien invasion or feral baby otter infestation, all public parks and lakes will be closed until further notice."

"That's not fair!" another student cried out.

"Life's not fair. Get used to it," Barkin snapped.

"No," Felix Renton said.

"Excuse me?" Barkin asked.

"He said no," Zita Flores replied. "We're not getting used to it."

"Listen up, people: Rules are rules."

"And since the alien invasion is over and nobody's seen a feral baby otter in the last two years," Zita countered, "Lake Middleton should be open."

Barkin looked at the hostile sea of faces before him. He wished he could give the lot of them detention. Unfortunately, that option was no longer available to him.

"Fine," the teacher grumbled. "The party's back on …"

The recent graduates began cheering.

"… But when the fabric of civilization begins to fray due to your generation's contempt for order and rules, don't blame me!"

V.

"Boys," James said, looking up from his cup of coffee as he heard a whup-whupping sound, assuming his sons were up to some creative mischief, "Remember what I told you: no blowing up the Stoppables' house."

"It's not us, Dad!" Jim said.

"Yeah! You think we'd actually make any noise if we were going to blow up a house?" Tim added. "We'd use something quiet like an oscillating wave disperser."

"Puh-leeze," Jim scoffed. "Silent: that means no noise. We'd want to use a wide-spread molecular disruptor ray."

"Oh, and how are you going to power that?" Tim countered. "You know what happened the last time we tapped into the power grid!"

"Jim, Tim, this is all very interesting," Ann said in a voice that made clear to her sons that they were not, under any circumstances, to try testing their theories.

"I agree," James said. "But if it's not Jim and Tim making that noise, what is it?"

Mrs. Stoppable, who had just looked out the front window, turned her head back to her guests. "I think it's the helicopters."

VI.

The media, both local and not-so-local, had converged on the pile of debris that marked the spot of Kim's house. News trucks crowded the street, helicopters hovered above, and scores of reporters milled about.

"It is such the circus out there," Kim said as she peeked around the edge of a drawn curtain. She sighed as she saw the mob scene. "We're going to have talk to them."

"Lead the way, KP," Ron said. "I've got your back."

Kim and Ron exited the Stoppables' house. "You let go of my hand, Ron Stoppable," the teen hero said to her boyfriend as she laced her fingers through his, "and you are so busted." Kim was determined that the press was going to get the message that she and Ron were a package story.

"Got it," he said with a grin.

They were halfway down the front path when three of the reporters spotted them and began calling Kim's name. The journalists were soon joined by their colleagues. The questions began to fly fast and furious.

"May I have some quiet, please and thank you?" Kim called out.

Much to her frustration, the questions were still being shouted her way.

"Yo, dudes!" Ron said to no avail.

Suddenly, a piercing whistle cut through the air, and the assembled reporters fell quiet. Kim and Ron looked down to see that Rufus, who had followed them outside, had successfully whistled the journalists into silence.

"Thanks, Rufus," Kim said before she looked out at the sea of expectant faces. "As you all know, the last twenty-four hours or so have been so the drama. I really don't have much to say other than everyone should be safe now and if there's anything we can do to be of help, we're just a call, beep, or hit on the web-site away."

The press began clamoring and shouting questions. Kim pointed to a reporter in the middle of the pack.

"Miss Possible, this was huge. Even bigger than the Diablos. How do you do all this by yourself?"

"I don't," she said. "There's Wade, who runs my web-site, and Rufus …"

"Hullo!" the mole rat said cheerfully as he waved at the crowd.

"And, most importantly, there's my partner Ron. I'm ferociously lucky he—"

"Miss Possible!" one of the reporters shouted.

"Yes?" Kim asked, hiding her annoyance at the interruption.

"The young man with you. He looks vaguely familiar," the man said pointing at Ron.

"You know, you're right," another journalist said. "I know I've seen him on TV."

"Wait! I know who he is!" a third reporter cried out.

"Well, KP," Ron said, "Looks like your badical BF is finally getting the recognition he deserves."

"Nice work, badical BF," she said as she squeezed his hand.

"That's the kid who was on the _Running of the Monkeys_ last year!" the newsman said, as he gestured towards Ron, who shuddered as he recalled his pan-dimensional vortex inducer-induced misadventures on Ape Island.

"No way – Wait, you're right!" a surprised TV anchor said.

"Pardon me," yet another reporter chimed in. "But can we get this back on track? It's not like anyone cares about the monkey boy."

Kim's nostrils flared. "I care about the monkey boy," she growled. "He's my BF."

"Oh, that's so going to be misquoted," Ron groaned.

"Uh huh," Rufus agreed.

"Are you saying that the monkey boy actually helped you?" the reporter asked skeptically.

"I just said that," Kim said as she strove to keep her breathing under control. "And he has a name: Ron. Ron Stoppable."

"Did anyone other than Wade, Rufus, and Don help you defeat the invaders?" a TV news show host asked.

"Uh, that's Ron," Ron said, correcting the man. "R-O-N."

"Yes," Kim said. "Doctor Drakken and Shego. In fact, it was Drakken's marigold ray that stopped the alien machines."

"Let me see if I got this straight," a reporter from Upperton followed-up. "Two notorious villains and Tom helped you save the world. Why do you think they did that?"

"I guess Drakken and Shego thought it would be hard to take over the world if invaders from another planet had already done it," Kim explained before she turned and smiled at her boyfriend. "And Ron's always helped me because, well, he's Ron."

"It's what the Ronman does," he said with pride.

For a moment, Kim and Ron forgot about the reporters, helicopters, and shattered remains of the house, losing themselves in one another's eyes. The moment passed quickly however when one reporter, a hostile edge to her voice, asked, "How long have you been collaborating with Drakken and Shego?"

"Excuse me?" a surprised Kim responded.

"You heard me, Miss Possible," the woman said accusingly. "The world wants to know: how long have you been consorting with known supervillains?"

"I so don't consort—"

"Okay, you know what?" Ron interjected as he began to pull Kim back towards the house. "It's been a long day. How about you all just give Rufus your names and emails and we'll get back to you about a news conference. 'Kay? Kay."

As Ron hustled a clearly annoyed Kim back to his house, Rufus withdrew a pad and pencil so he could begin collecting information from members of the Fourth Estate.

Once back inside the Stoppable home, Kim rounded on Ron. "And you did that why?" she demanded. "That woman's going to think I have something to hide!"

"KP, don't you know who that woman was?"

"No," she said. "Should I?"

"That was Lynn Accurate. She's only the host of cable TV's most popular and factually bereft infotainment program, _America's Top Scandal_."

"And you know this how?"

"It's something I've seen. On occasion," he added hastily as he saw the displeased expression on his girlfriend's face. "After I've finished all my homework, given Han a bath, taken out the trash, and thought of new and romantic things to do with you that don't involve Bueno Nacho."

"Riiggght," Kim said. "We are so going to have to deal with you and the TV before college."

"Assuming I ever get into one," Ron observed sourly.

"Ron, you're going to go to college," Kim said.

"I don't know, KP," he said. "Maybe I'm just meant to be a Smarty Mart guy."

"You are going to college," Kim replied firmly as she took Ron's hands in hers. "And even if you didn't, you'd still be my Smarty Mart guy."

"Thanks," Ron said.

"No big," Kim said. "Now let's get our heads in the PR game. If what you said about Lynn Accurate is true, we are so going to have to go on offense or my rep is shot."

"How about some exclusive interviews to set the record straight?" Ron suggested. "I could call my crown-stealing homey Sturge at_ Mid Day Middleton_."

"Good thinking," Kim said. "But if Lynn's program is as big as you say, we may need someone bigger. Someone like Paula Pandowdy, the daytime talk show queen."

"I got nuthin' there, KP," Ron said.

"Wrong," Kim countered. "Don't you remember? She plays poker with your boss, Martin Smarty."

"That's right!" Ron said. "All I need to do is ask Mr. Smarty to put us through to Paula and we're Chauncey!"

"See," Kim said warmly. "Being a Smarty Mart guy's pretty spankin'."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Ron said, appreciating the encouragement. "But it's not as cool as being your guy. Especially if I'm Ron College."

"Nice," Kim said. "You're getting good."

"Getting?" Ron replied with a goofy grin. "The Ronman got good a long time ago."

"Don't push it," Kim advised before she gave Ron a kiss on the cheek.

"Got it," Ron said with a sheepish grin. "So, you want me to call Mr. Smarty now?"

"Please and thank you," Kim said.

_To Be Continued ...  
_

* * *

KP, RS & Company © Disney; Lynn Accurate is the property of the author.


	4. State of the Unions

Thanks to Joe Stoppinghem, spectre666, Ran Hakubi, whitem, captainkodak1, rollred2000, Josh84, campy, CajunBear73, Boris Yeltsin, acosta perez jose ramiro, Mr. Wizard, Drakonis Aurous, Danny-171984, Bubbahotek, Comet Moon, daywalkr82, Whisper from the Shadows, RonHeartbreaker, Quathis, Samurai Crunchbird, JeanieBeanie33, Jerridian, Uru Baen, PoisonousAngel, .ninja, Molloy, Ace Ian Combat, fatherfigure1, Mattk, storyreader51, and Zarartan for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

Special thanks to campy for proofreading.

Leave a review, get a response.

* * *

I.

Lyle Lott dropped down on his hands and knees and focused on the glass on the far side of the room. He held out his putter like a gun and, as the trained marksman he was, peered down its shaft. Then he rose, lined up his shot and pulled back. He was following through on his swing when the door opened, interrupting him and breaking his concentration.

"Cheese and crackers!" he exclaimed as he watched his shot break wide, sending the golf ball rolling past its target. He frowned, then looked up to see his visitor. The expression on her face did not augur well.

"What's the damage, Polly?" he asked, dispensing with any pleasantries.

"It's not pretty, Mr. President."

Lott sighed and dropped down onto one of the couches that flanked the Oval Office fireplace.

"How not pretty?" he asked, suspecting he knew the answer. The aliens' assault machines could be found all across the country, a stark reminder of the most successful invasion of American soil in the nation's history.

"Overnight polling shows that ninety-nine percent of the public are dissatisfied with our handling of the attack," Polly Titian, America's most successful and cunning political operative, said as she handed her boss a sheaf of data.

"That means one percent were satisfied," the President said, rubbing his chin. "Who the heck were they?"

"Millennialists," Polly answered.

"Great. So I've got the nut job end-of-the-world vote all sewed up," Lott commented acidly. "The election's in the bag."

Polly let her boss stew for a minute, then spoke. "Would you like the good news?"

Lott arched an eyebrow. "Good news?" he parroted incredulously, before he brightened. "Tell me one of those things took out Speaker's house." Chris Speaker was the improbably yet appropriately named Speaker of the House of Representatives. She was also Lott's most implacable political foe and a likely challenger in the upcoming electoral contest.

"No such luck, Mr. President," Polly said. "However, I think we may be able to spin the situation to our advantage, and actually take care of some longstanding negatives."

The leader of the free world put his feet up on the butler's table. "How?"

"Here's what I'm thinking …"

The President listened in rapt attention as his advisor outlined her proposal. "So the only drawback is that that cheerleader's reputation might take a hit?" he asked.

"Yes," Polly said.

Lott got up from the couch, retrieved his putter and dropped to his knees. Once again wielding his club as if it were a weapon, he lined up his shot. Polly sat quietly and watched as the President rose to his feet and took his swing. "Do it," he said as they watched the little dimpled ball glide into the glass.

II.

"I'd be delighted to call Paula …" Martin Smarty said to Ron and Kim.

"Badical!" Ron exclaimed.

"Thanks, Mr. Smarty," Kim added.

"… On one condition," Smarty added.

Ron gulped. Conditions were rarely good things.

"Ronald, I want you to accept a promotion to Assistant Manager of the Middleton Smarty Mart," Smarty said.

Ron, who'd been expecting bad news, was stunned. "For real?" he said.

"For real," Smarty said. "You've got what it takes to go to the top, Ronald, and I need a protégé."

"I don't know what a protégé is," Ron admitted, "but learning the business from you would be badical!"

Smarty laughed. "Son, you crack me up."

"Uh, question," Ron, who suddenly turned pensive, asked.

"Shoot," Smarty said.

"What about college? I'm still hoping to get in somewhere. And, uh, I may have something I need to do for the summer. And, oh, there's the whole saving-the-world thing with Kim."

"We'll work around all that," Smarty said. "If you're going to learn how to be a corporate mogul, you'll need to learn how to multitask. So, what do you say?"

Ron looked at Kim, who was clearly excited by Smarty's offer. "I'll take it you're down with this?" Ron asked his girlfriend.

"So down," she said with an encouraging smile.

"Then I'll do it," Ron said with gusto.

"Excellent!" Smarty said. "Congratulations on your promotion!"

"Thanks, sir," Ron said. "I'll make you proud!"

"I'm sure you will," Smarty said. "Now let's talk about your first assignment as a member of the Smarty Mart management team …"

"I'm part of the management team, KP!" Ron said gleefully. "This is so cool!"

Kim beamed at Ron. "I'm so proud of you!"

"… Ronald," Smarty said, "I need you to find Arty a girlfriend."

III.

Rufus clambered about the debris pile, a small miner's hat on his head and a searchlight in his paw. He was determined to keep searching, regardless of how much time, effort and energy it took, until he found what he was looking for. Nothing could, nothing would stop him: he was a mole rat on a mission.

IV.

"Mr. Secretary General? I have the President of the United States on line one."

Zhou Jintao rubbed his temples, dreading the call. He and Lyle Lott had never gotten along, ever since he was a junior diplomat responsible for relations with New York City and the American was a rising young local politician who submitted legislation calling for the UN to be evicted from its headquarters so the East River complex could be turned into a parking garage. While the proposed law was shelved at the behest of the then President, Lott's career took off like a rocket, the cheers of millions of parking-deprived Manhattanites propelling him to political stardom. The Singaporean cursed the wicked turn of fate that led him to the pinnacle of world diplomacy just as Lott became leader of the biggest contributor to his organization's budget. "Put him through," he sighed.

"Jimmy," Lott said, using the nickname he knew Zhou despised. "How are things up there at the garage?"

"As fine as can be expected," Zhou said as he looked out his window at the giant alien machines that now dotted the UN grounds like so many abstract sculptures. "How are things in Washington?"

"'Bout the same I expect. Fortunately, the real damage has been limited to the Tri-City Area in Colorado," Lott said. "Look, let's cut the banter. We've both got a problem."

"Oh?"

"As you'd suspect, voters aren't too happy about what just happened. They want to hold someone responsible."

"A most unfortunate development for you as you consider the upcoming election."

"Your concern touches me, Jimmy. Fortunately, I don't have to take the fall alone. Every leader on the planet was caught with his pants down on this one, including you. At least I can say it was good old American ingenuity that finally saved the day."

"Ah, yes, Kim Possible …"

"Possible?" Lott scoffed. "It was Drakken that saved the day."

"The mad scientist? Surely you joke."

"Nope. Heck, the girl said so herself on TV. Anyway, here's how you can help me and look good in the process …"

Zhou listened intently before responding. "That would be highly unorthodox, but could indeed be beneficial."

"So you'll do it?" Lott said.

"Yes," Zhou replied with a rueful chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Lott asked.

"You must admit, given our past relations, that it is rather strange that our interests coincide, if only for this brief moment."

"I'll give you that. But don't worry," Lott said with a laugh. "I still want to turn your building into a high-rise parking facility."

"I am reassured that even in these times filled with momentous change some things can be counted on."

"Just doing my part for world peace, Jimmy."

"Which happens to be the same as what will help your upcoming electoral campaign."

"Funny how it works that way, isn't it?"

"Indeed," Zhou said. "Good luck with Operation Wing Nut."

"Thanks," Lott said. "Assuming it all goes well, I'll see you in New York tomorrow afternoon."

V.

"Mom, Dad, Drs. P and related family members," Ron said with pride as Kim stood by his side, "meet the new Assistant Manager of the Middleton Smarty Mart!"

"Kimmie-cub?" James asked. "I thought you were going to college this fall?"

"Honey, I think Ron's talking about himself," Ann said.

"Oh," he replied sheepishly before recovering. "Outstanding!"

"Thanks, Dr. P," Ron said.

"We're very proud of you, Son," Mr. Stoppable said.

"But what about college?" a clearly concerned Mrs. Stoppable asked.

"No problemo, Mom," Ron said. "Mr. Smarty said we can work around that. Assuming I get in somewhere, that is."

"You're getting in, Ron," Kim reassured him.

"Thanks for the confidence, KP," Ron said.

"No big," she offered.

"So, when do you start?" Mr. Stoppable asked.

"Uh, yeah, about that," Ron said as he began to rub the back of his neck.

"Ronnie?" Mrs. Stoppable asked.

"Sensei wants me to come to Japan for the summer," he said.

"Sensei? From the adoption agency?" his father asked.

"Does this have anything to do with Hana?" Mrs. Stoppable asked.

"Yeah," Ron said. "But not the way you think it does," he quickly answered when he saw the worried expression on his mother's face. "You remember how I told you Han was a world-saving super ninja baby?"

"Yes," his father said as Hana, as if trying to support her brother, proceeded to toddle up a wall and onto the ceiling, impressing all of the Possibles, save Kim, who'd already seen the child in action.

"Sensei doesn't work for an adoption agency," Ron said before he took a deep breath. "He's the head of a secret ninja school."

"What?" his father exclaimed.

"Yeah," Ron said. "It's called Yamanuchi. You remember the exchange program I went on in junior year? It was to the same place Han's from."

"I don't understand," Mrs. Stoppable said.

"You should probably start from the beginning," Kim suggested.

"You sure, KP?" Ron asked.

"So sure," she said. "I'm surprised you haven't told them already."

"Well, I guess this is my way of telling them," he said innocently. "Okay, here's the deal …"

VI.

Doctor Director looked up from the latest situation reports on the aftermath of the Lorwardian invasion when the secure phone rang.

"Elizabeth Director," she said as she answered the call.

"Betty, it's Polly Titian."

Director closed her eyes and took a deep breath. In light of recent events, a phone call from the President's powerful political advisor wasn't a good sign.

"Hello, Polly, how can I help you?" the GJ chief said.

"The President wants to see you in one hour," Titian said.

"May I know why?" Director asked.

"Sorry, but it's a matter of international security that I'd rather not discuss over the phone," Polly said. "We'll see you shortly."

Before Betty could respond Polly ended the call.

VII.

"So why didn't you use these powers before?" Mr. Stoppable asked.

"I couldn't," Ron said. "They'd just come and go."

"Yet this time you were able to summon them," his mother said.

"Yeah," Ron answered. "Kim was in trouble."

"Ron, I've been in trouble before," his girlfriend observed.

"Not like this, KP," he said, suppressing a shudder as he recalled Warhok's suggestion that Warmonga mount Kim on a wall.

Kim was going to ask Ron what he meant but the haunted look in his eyes told her to save this topic for another time.

"I had to do something," Ron continued. "Fortunately, Sensei told me I was ready."

"Told you?" a confused Mr. Stoppable said. "I thought you said he was in Japan."

"He was but he can communicate with me, by, uh, well, don't ask me how he does it. One time he used Cafeteria Lady's gravy, which was sick and wrong. And don't get me started on the garden gnome –"

"Here and now, Ron," Kim interjected.

"Oh, yeah, sure, KP," he said with a sheepish chuckle. "So, anyway, Sensei told me I was the monkey master and that I was ready."

Kim took her boyfriend's hand in hers and nodded. "And he was so ready," she said with a smile. "For which I am ferociously grateful."

Ron, to Kim's surprise, pulled his hand away. "Yeah, well, don't be. If it hadn't been for me, you wouldn't have been knocked out in the first place."

Kim responded by gripping Ron's hand. "You are so not going to go down that road," she said. "You stood up to a bully, and that's all that matters to me. You did me proud."

"Thanks," Ron said as he leaned into give Kim a kiss.

"Ahem."

The two teens, their buss disrupted, blushed and looked up to see four wryly smiling parents, one bemused grandmother, two disgusted tweens and one giggling toddler.

"Time and place?" Kim said sheepishly.

Kim's mother grinned. "Time and place," she said.

Jim snorted. "There's no way Ron can go to Japan …"

"Yeah," Tim said, "Kim will spend the entire summer moping, crying that she doesn't get to kiss her booooyyyyyyyfriend."

"Actually, that won't be a problem. Sensei wants Kim to come, too, so she'll be able to kiss me whenever … she … wants …" Ron said before he turned to his GF. "That didn't come out right, did it?"

"Understatement much?" she said as she saw the scowl her father was directing at Ron.

VIII.

"Thanks for stopping by, Bets," Lott said. "Coffee? Tea?"

"No, thank you, Mr. President," she said.

"Bet you want to know why you're here?" he asked. "I'm assuming Polly didn't tell you."

"No sir, she didn't," Director said as he cast a glance towards the cagey political operative.

"Good, good," Lott said. "This all has to be hush-hush," he said conspiratorially before he rose from his chair by the fireplace. "How big is your budget?"

"Sir?"

"Your budget, how big is it?"

"Approximately twelve billion dollars, of which one third is provided by the United States government."

"And how many agents do you have?"

"Four hundred seventeen."

"Kim Possible one of them?"

"No, though we have cooperated with her in the past."

Lott sat down behind his large desk. "I've got an election coming up. Voters want better value for their tax dollars. Polly suggests I cut our GJ contribution to zero, use the four billion on reconstruction."

"Mister President, that would cripple Global Justice," Director protested.

"Would that be a loss?" Lott asked. "That cheerleader seems able to do your job for free."

"With all due respect, as good as Miss Possible is, there are many things we do that she does not and cannot."

"Prove it."

"Excuse me?"

"I want them all. Drakken, Dementor, all of them. You bring them in, you keep your budget. Heck, I'll even lobby for an increase."

"Sir, apprehending all of the world's supervillains will be a huge operation. Why not assign it to the Armed Forces?"

"In case you haven't noticed, Doctor, this country was just invaded. There's no way I'm deploying troops overseas. I need them here so people feel safe. Besides, you know how some people start ranting about big, bad Uncle Sam whenever we take action. It's much better if GJ handles this one."

"I see," Director said coolly, knowing that if the operation succeeded Lott would find a way to take credit and if it failed, she'd be left shouldering the blame. "I'll have to talk with Secretary Gene—"

"Zhou's already approved it," Lott interjected as he picked up the phone and proffered the receiver. "You want, you can confirm it with him."

"Very well then," Director said, realizing she'd been outflanked. "Is there anything else I should know?"

"Yes," Lott answered. "You've got twenty-four hours to complete the assignment, Doctor."

"And then what happens?"

"You leave that to me," Lott said as he looked down at some papers on his desk, indicating the meeting had come to an end.

IX.

The Stoppables' bell rang. Ron's mother rose from her seat and went to the door, which she opened once she was satisfied the unexpected visitor wasn't a reporter.

"May I help you?" she asked the young African-American woman standing before her.

"Hi, Mrs. Stoppable," Monique said. "Hey, girlfriend!" she called out once she saw Kim.

"Hi, Mon," Kim said as she came to greet her friend and saw Monique wasn't alone but accompanied by Zita and Felix, whose wheelchair was bedecked with Club Banana shopping bags.

"Yo, Mo, Felix, Zita" Ron added as he joined his girlfriend, grateful for the momentary reprieve from Dr. Possible's hostile gaze. "What brings you to the hood?

"We caught you on TV and saw what happened to your house," Monique explained. "We thought you could use some new clothes, especially with the big beach bash tomorrow night."

"I don't know what to say," Kim stammered.

"How about 'it's time to par-tay!'" Felix suggested as Zita began taking clothes out of the bags that were hanging from the handles of her boyfriend's chair.

"You guys are great," Kim said appreciatively.

"Not as great as this stuff's going to look on you, girlfriend! How about we check it out?" Monique suggested.

"Sounds spankin'" Kim said. "You mind?" she asked her BF.

"I'm cool with that, KP," Ron said. "My main man Felix and I can chill while we bash some zombies. Maybe have a doubles contest with Jim and Tim."

"You mean it?" Jim asked.

"Yeah, if you don't mind being crushed," Ron said confidently. "Felix Renton is not only Middleton High's valedictorian, but a bon-diggity zombie slayer."

"Thanks, Stoppable," Felix said graciously.

"Cool!" Tim said as he scrambled to set up the game console.

A bemused Ann Possible and Mrs. Stoppable watched as Kim, Monique and Zita quickly retired to Hana's room and the boys got ready to play their game.

James, meanwhile, cleared his throat.

"Ronald," he said, "Before you bash those zombies, I think another dad-to-boyfriend talk is in order."

Ron gulped. "I'm all about the talks, Mr. Dr. P."

"Outstanding," he said. "Let's take a walk."

_TBC …_

* * *

Lyle Lott, Polly Titian, Speaker Speaker, Zhou Jintao © the author; KP, RS, et. al © Disney.


	5. Unexpected Visitors

Thanks to Ran Hakubi, daywalkr82, Comet Moon, CajunBear73, lippy norwegian, Quathis, acosta perez jose ramiro, Mr. Wizard, Josh84, screaming phoenix, Danny-171984, Boris Yeltsin, Ranchero D, spedclass, Samurai Crunchbird, Whisper from the Shadows, Balrog60, Drakonis Aurous, TexasDad, RonHeartbreaker, Hang Tuah, Molloy, whitem, .ninja, Eddy13, and donalddeutsch for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

Special thanks to the amazing campy, who deserves a special Fannie for his proofreading.

Leave a review, get a response.

KP & Co © Disney

* * *

I.

"Ah, my dear sister, how nice to see you," Gemini said from the comfort of his swivel seat, which was perched atop an impressively ldais. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"You're under arrest, Gemini," she replied coolly.

"'Gemini'," the WWEE leader said as he languidly scratched Pepe behind the ears. "I see we're being professional today. Very well. Agent Alpha – Destroy her!"

Director turned to see one of Gemini's men had appeared behind her and was pointing a weapon in her direction.

"I don't think so," the GJ chief said as she dropped to the floor and rolled, easily avoiding an energy beam directed her way by the henchman. She then sprung to her feet, pivoted and kicked away the man's ray gun before she grabbed his arm, which she twisted behind his back, bringing him to his knees.

"Most impressive, Sister," Gemini said as he steepled his fingers. "But let's see how you handle the rest of the alphabet!"

"I don't have time for this, Sheldon," she snapped as more than two dozen WWEE henchpersonnel appeared. "Backup!" she growled into her wrist communications device.

Much to Gemini's surprise, thirty GJ agents rushed into the facility, their stun weapons at the ready.

"This is not possible. This is so, so … efficient!" the villain sputtered. "This isn't fair! I'm telling mother!"

"Sheldon, don't be a brat," Betty Director said with a roll of the eyes.

"Oh, now you're calling me names!" Gemini protested. "You always were a bully, Betty."

"Me? A bully? Look who's talking!" she retorted. "Always taking away my dollies …"

"Uh, excuse me, ma'am," one of the GJ agents said uneasily.

"What?" she snapped before she realized she was once again violating her policy of not letting family matters interfere with her job.

"We've secured the other prisoners, ma'am," the agent said.

"Good," she said. "You can take him, too."

"What?" a nonplussed Gemini exclaimed. "That's it? Aren't you going to go on about how I used to hide your toys?"

"Not today, Sheldon," she said coolly as she turned to leave, once again wholly focused on the mission. After all, she knew if this operation wasn't concluded soon and successfully, she was going to lose her favorite toy of all: her agency.

II.

Ron dutifully followed Kim's father out the door. The two men walked down the drive in silence, turned, walked some more, then stopped in front of the remains of the Possibles' home.

"Let's get one thing straight," James said as he looked at the rubble pile. "I meant what I said at Kim's graduation."

"Uh, thanks, Dr. P," Ron said, now thoroughly confused. _If Kim's dad's okay with us dating_, the teen wondered, _what does he want to talk about?_

"You're good for Kim," James explained. "You make her happy, help her excel, keep her grounded. And you watch out for her."

"I try to do what I can," Ron said.

"Good," James said before he rounded on his daughter's beau. "I'm going to be honest with you, Ronald: I'm not happy about you and Kim going off to Japan this summer."

"Look, if it's about the kissing …" Ron said nervously.

"It's not that, though I expect you to be a gentleman at all times, otherwise …"

"Black hole?"

"That's if you make her unhappy," James said sternly. "You cross any lines, you're looking at a one-way ticket on an experimental trans-dimensional probe."

"Gotcha," Ron gulped. "Uh, just to be safe, what are those lines?"

"You'll know," James answered before he set his hand on Ron's shoulder and his expression softened. "Look, this isn't about whether I trust the two of you alone. I do. And as much as I hate the idea that my Kimmie-cub is no longer a little girl, there's no getting around the fact that she's grown up. So have you."

"Then what's the problem?" Ron asked, bafflement etched on his face.

James turned from Ron and once again looked at what had been his home. "We've always been a close-knit family," the rocket scientist said. "You know that. The trips. The family reunions. The holidays …"

Ron nodded his understanding.

"… I assumed we'd have a summer to prepare for Kim moving out. Now, suddenly, everything's changed. Our house is gone, Kim's going away …"

The two stood in silence for a few moments. Then Ron spoke. "Kim will never go away," he said.

James looked at his daughter's boyfriend, inviting an explanation.

"Doctor P, Kim loves you. Even if she isn't in Middleton, she'll always be with you and you guys will always be with her. That's never going to change. The fam means everything to her."

James considered the young man standing before him, then smiled. "I really have underestimated you, Ronald. I'm sorry."

Ron waved off James' comments. "It's all good," he added jauntily before adding a bit less assuredly, "So, uh, about Japan. I know the timing's not great but I really need Kim there. Are you cool with her coming?"

James nodded. "Yes, I'm cool. Given what you've told us and what you've just said, I don't think you'd want to do this unless it was very important. But don't forget, you make her unhappy or cross any lines …"

"… And it's back to outer space," Ron said cheerfully, seeing the grin on James' face. "Gotcha, Doctor P."

The two men were about to return to the Stoppables' house when they heard a familiar voice call to them.

"Hullo!"

Ron and James turned at the sound of Rufus's greeting and stared in wonder. There, making his way down the street towards them, was a soot-covered naked mole rat. And in his paws was a dirty, torn, yet still intact Pandaroo.

III.

"Myron, you DUMPKOPF! How many times have I told you NOT TO PUT TOO MUCH APPLE IN ZE SHTRUDEL?"

"I'm sorry, Bill," Dementor's brother-in-law apologized.

"Vhat is with this calling of me BILL?"

"Don't you remember, Bill? Brother-in-law?"

"Ach, don't remind me," Dementor said as he paced the floor of the Demens Strudelwerks and Electronic Munitions Factory. "Just because my sister—" he began to rant before he was cut off by an explosion that was accompanied by the detonation of smoke bombs.

The booming echoes faded, replaced by a deafening silence that descended upon the guns and buns facility. "Vhat is with the smoke?" Dementor asked as he waved his arms, clearing the air before him only to discover a number of unfamiliar blue-uniformed men who were wielding weapons. "Und you vould be?"

"Global Justice," one of the strangers barked. "You're under arrest!"

"Vhat?" Dementor shrieked. "I am not in agreement with the arresting. Not today, not tomorrow, NOT EVER!" The diminutive villain then activated a nano-jetpack and lifted off. Before Dementor got very far, however, one of the agents stunned him, his pack shorted out and he crashed to the floor.

Myron looked at his fallen brother-in-law, then at the GJ agent. "Gee, do you think I could do that sometime?"

IV.

Monique handed Kim a pink tank top to try on. As the teen hero considered the garment, her Club Banana co-worker asked, "So, how you doing, girlfriend?"

"Tired, I guess," Kim admitted. "The past twenty-four hours have been so the drama. Graduation, aliens, the house."

"It must have been scary. Being kidnapped and everything," Zita observed.

"Not really," Kim said.

"You are one cool customer, girl," Monique said admiringly.

"It's not like I haven't been captured before," Kim said. "Though to be honest, there was a moment when I was scared," she added as she sat down on the bed.

Monique and Zita remained quiet, waiting for their friend to continue.

"It was when that beam took me away from Ron …"

Kim closed her eyes and paused, the distress of the moment obviously still fresh for her.

"… He was trying so hard to hold on to me, but then I was pulled away. I didn't know if I'd ever see him again. And that so frightened me."

"You didn't think Ron was going to just let those aliens take you away?" Zita asked.

"Not for a second," Kim said. "But right then, there was nothing either of us could do. And, well, I'd been worrying about what was going to happen with us after graduation, which only made things worse."

"Girlfriend, why didn't you tell me there were problems in Romance City?" Monique demanded.

"What? No!" Kim replied with a wave of the hands. "Everything's fine. It's just that, well, Ron's been freaking about school and I realized I was just taking everything for granted and I so don't want to lose him."

"I don't think you have to worry about that," Zita observed.

"I know," Kim admitted. "Still, I can't tell you how relieved I was when I had the chance to tell him that nothing would come between us."

"When was that?" Zita asked.

"When we were fighting Warhok and Warmonga over Lake Middleton," Kim answered matter-of-factly.

"You two were discussing your relationship during a fight?" an amazed Zita asked.

"Admittedly, not the best time, but I'm glad Ron's willing to talk about his feelings," Kim said. "It was kind of annoying at the time. I mean, Ron sometimes has trouble keeping his head in the game, but now that I think about it, it was kind of romantic."

"Romantic?" Monique snorted. "That boy doesn't know romance …"

"Monique!" Kim protested. "That's so not fair!"

"Oh?" Monique replied. "Don't tell me you suddenly forgot about kids-eat-free? Or how he spaced on V Day, then tried to give you a toothbrush?"

"Ron's trying," Kim replied truculently, not in the mood to focus on her BF's shortcomings. "He hasn't used the coupon book in months and we even went to _Chez Couteaux _last week."

"Nice try, girl. He's still more likely to take you to lunch at Smarty Mart," Monique said slyly.

"Your point being?" Kim countered. "The important thing is we're together. Besides, he likes the pretzels!"

"Uh huh. And his two percent discount," Monique said with a triumphant smile as Kim frowned.

"Fine, so Ron's still a little too enamored of bargains," Kim grumped. "At least he thinks he's being romantic when he shares them with me."

"Point to Monique," the fashion diva crowed. "Now, as I was going to say before you interrupted, that boy doesn't know romance – except for when it really counts. I will never forget the sight of him rushing through the crowd and leaping up into that beam to get you."

"He's ferociously romantic at times like that," Kim said with a dreamy smile, all thoughts of Daily Twist Tuesdays forgotten.

"I just hope I find someone who'll come rescue me if I'm abducted by little green men!" Monique said with a shake of the head.

"I'm sure you will, Mon," Kim offered reassuringly.

"I sure hope you're right," Monique sighed before brightening. "Well, if we can't get me a love life, at least we can DSF."

"DSF?" Zita asked.

"Do some fashion," Monique answered as she held up a blue top before Kim and smiled. "Now this is speaking to me …"

V.

"Aiiiiiiieeee!" Junior screamed as the front door was kicked down and a squad of Global Justice agents rushed into the Rockwaller abode.

"What is the meaning of this?" an outraged Senor Senior demanded.

"You're under arrest, sir," the lead agent said. "You'll have to come with us."

"On what grounds?" the billionaire demanded.

"Let's see," the agent said. "We can start with your attacks on the European power grid two years ago. Or should we fast forward to last February's musical mind-control plot?"

Senor Senior considered the situation. Resisting Global Justice might be satisfying, but he knew that in this instance it would be futile given the number of agents on the scene. Besides, he didn't imagine fighting GJ would endear him to Nana Possible. "Very well," he said. "We will come with you."

"Pappi, will they have hair care products where we are going?" Junior wondered. "If not, I will need to bring some."

"I am sure they will have everything we need, my son," Senior said evasively, suspecting the GJ detention center to which he was sure they were going would not be stocked with _Le Goop_.

Junior turned to his girlfriend, "Farewell, my love," he cooed.

"You can't leave me!" Bonnie protested.

"Alas, I must," Junior said.

"This is so unfair," Bonnie groused as she rounded on the GJ agent who appeared to be in charge.

"I'm sorry, miss, but I have my orders," the man said as his strike team prepared to leave.

"But you can't take him!" she protested as she grabbed Junior's free arm. Soon she was in a tug-of-war match with an agent who was trying to escort the young man from the house.

"See, Pappi, her devotion is as strong as, as – Ouch! Ouch! – well, as strong as some super strong thingie."

"I will admit, Junior, her devotion is most impressive, as is her grip," Senor Senior observed.

"No!" Bonnie cried out as the GJ agent freed Junior from her clutches and led him out to the waiting hoverjet.

"Be strong, my love!" Junior cried out as he climbed into the hoverjet.

"Great," Bonnie complained as she watched the hoverjet lift off. "Now I have to go to the graduation party alone! I'll look like such a loser!"

VI.

When James, Ron, and Rufus returned, the girls had come down from Ron's room to join everyone else for some of Nana's lemon squares.

"Could you guys excuse us?" Ron asked. "Rufus, KP and me have to talk for a moment."

"Save-the-world business?" Felix wondered.

"Yeah, you could say that," Ron said, trying desperately to look innocent.

"What? Why didn't Wade call me?" Kim demanded.

"I'll tell you in the garage. It's super-secret," Ron said as he took his GF's hand. "If you'll follow me."

Curious, Kim did as requested. She was surprised when he halted at the door to the garage.

"Okay, you've got to cover your eyes," Ron instructed.

"Ron, what's going on?" Kim asked.

"Can't tell you, KP," Ron said. "Just be patient and all will be revealed."

Seeing the look of determination on her BF's face, Kim relented. "Fine," she said with mild exasperation as she complied, then let Ron lead her into his makeshift bedroom, where he guided her to his cot.

"Okay, you can open your eyes now," he announced.

"So, what's the si—"

"Ta da!" a very pleased Rufus said as he held up Pandaroo, who was now girdled by a satin bow.

Kim gasped. "Oh my … how? Where?" she stammered as she grasped the beaten-up plush toy. "This is … wow. I so don't know what to say," she said as her eyes began to water.

"You should thank Rufus," Ron said. "My little buddy found him down the street."

Kim put down her beloved toy and picked up the naked mole rat, whom she kissed on the cheek. "Thank you, Rufus," she said through freely flowing tears. "You rock."

"No big," the blushing naked mole rat said.

"And you're not bad either," Kim added as she looked at Ron, clutching the toy to her chest. "So why here?"

"I've known you long enough to know you're kind of attached to Pandaroo. So I thought, well, you know …"

"I might cry like such the baby?" she said through her tears.

Ron grinned. "Can't have my bon-diggity GF losing it in front of her brothers. It's not good for her tough-as-nails rep."

Kim chuckled. "You're too much, Ron Stoppable," she said as she reached up and touched his face. "Thanks," she said softly before she leaned in for a kiss.

Not surprisingly, being the perceptive creature he was, Rufus knew what was coming. Rather than stay and watch his human and his human's mate smack lips, he departed in search of some cheese.

VII.

Drakken had been in a funk ever since Shego had gone off to her appointment with Midas.

"Stupid masseur" he grumbled as he took a sip of his raspberry lime rickey, which, he had to admit, was dee-lish. He then turned back to his copy of _Villain's Digest_, hoping to take his mind off of his lippy sidekick when he noticed a shadow had fallen across his magazine. He took off his sunglasses, then looked up to see it wasn't a cloud but a GJ hoverjet that was blocking the sun.

"Oh, doodles," he muttered as dozens of combat-ready Global Justice agents slid down ropes to the resort.

Given the circumstances, he did the only thing he could think of. "Shego!" he bellowed as loudly as his lungs would allow.

VIII.

Kim was sitting alone with her mother at the Stoppables' kitchen table. "So, what do you think?"

Ann smiled at her daughter. "I think it's sweet that you're asking," she said. "But you are eighteen and a high school graduate, after all."

"I know," Kim said. "But that doesn't mean that what you and Dad think doesn't matter to me."

"I think it's awfully romantic and I hope you and Ron have a good time. I do have a favor to ask of you, though."

"What?"

"I'd like you to take Tim and Jim to the party."

"The tweebs?" Kim exclaimed. "You want me to babysit Jim and Tim at my graduation party?"

"Honey, I'm sure they've been hit as hard as you by what happened to the house. And they're closer to you and your friends than they are to the other freshmen."

Kim sighed. "I know. It's just that …"

"You want this to be a very special night for you and Ron."

Kim nodded.

"Don't worry," Ann reassured her. "It will be. You just need to bring the boys to the party. We'll take care of picking them up."

Kim smiled. "Fair enough. And as long as you're going to do that, would you mind giving Wade a ride home?"

"Not at all," Ann said. "I didn't know he was coming."

"He wasn't. At least until you inspired me to invite him," Kim said as she rose from her chair and embraced her mother. "You rock, Mom."

"I try," Ann said as she returned her daughter's hug.

IX.

"Oh, that feels good," Shego purred. "Put another one on."

Midas complied with Shego's request, gently laying one of the hot rocks on her back.

The green-skinned villainess sighed with pleasure. She was enjoying her spa treatment very much. She didn't like admitting it, but she still ached from the shot she took from Warhok during the climactic battle in downtown Middleton. Still, there was something different about this appointment with Midas. The frisson she'd experienced in prior visits was missing. She couldn't quite figure out why and began to wonder what was different when she heard a familiar voice calling her name in panic.

"Shego!"

She looked to Midas. "Sorry, but looks like I've got to go," she said as she rolled off his table. She shook off the towel and grabbed her sunglasses, then headed outside to be greeted by a swim-trunk-suited Drakken heading her way with a posse of Global Justice agents in hot pursuit.

"Doctor D, hit the deck!" she called out.

"The deck? What deck?" he yelled.

Shego rolled her eyes. "Get down on the ground," she barked.

Drakken did as ordered, offering her a clear shot at the agents. She took advantage of the situation and quickly loosed a volley of shots, which scattered the men.

"Come on," she ordered bent over, grabbed Drakken's hand and pulled him to his feet.

"Uh, Shego …"

"What?"

"Behind you," Drakken said meekly.

Shego turned to find herself facing Will Du and a dozen more Global Justice agents.

"What do you want? We're on vacation," she snapped.

"That may be the case, but you're under arrest," he said.

"Under arrest?" Shego replied incredulously. "Drakken just saved the world!"

"Only because he could not take it over," Du said. "Am I not correct?"

"Oh, so now it's a crime to want to take over the world?" Drakken said.

"No, but it is a crime to wear those in public," Du said, obviously disapproving of Drakken's choice of swimwear.

"Actually, I kind of like them," Shego said, much to her surprise.

"Really?" an equally surprised Drakken replied.

"Yeah, good color, good cut. They work."

"Well, thank you, Shego," Drakken said, quite pleased with the compliment. He then turned to his captor. "So when was the last time a steaming hot woman had something nice to say about your clothes, Mr. Smarty Pants?"

"Did you just call Shego 'steaming hot'?" Du asked.

A stunned Shego stared at her boss. The agents took advantage of her shock to affix special cuffs designed to dampen her glow power.

"Well, er, ahem, I, uh, may have …" Drakken said uneasily as he, too, was cuffed and led to a waiting GJ hoverjet. "You see, I mean, er …" he stammered.

The aircraft had been aloft for more than ten minutes before the blue-skinned mad scientist managed to stop spluttering.

_TBC … _


	6. Talking Points

Thanks to spedclass, CajunBear73, Comet Moon, whitem, Boris Yeltsin, Jason Barnett, screaming phoenix, Samurai Crunchbird, Quathis, Josh84, the Enduring Man-Child, Mr. Wizard, LTAOZFAN, Eddy13, Ran Hakubi, acosta pere jose ramiro, johnrie18, JAKT, Chiristian Ninja Rabbit, snapbang, Joe Stoppinghem, Drakonis Aurous, Aero Tendo, Danny-171984, Molloy, campy, sweetnsour33, and .ninja for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

Special thanks to campy for beta- and proofreading this chapter. I owe him a stack of pancakes.

Leave a review and I'll send a response.

Kim, Ron et. al. © Disney. All original characters © the author.

* * *

I.

Kim lay awake, holding Pandaroo close to her. She looked over to Hana, who was curled up beneath her blanket. The teen hero envied the toddler, who had fallen asleep the moment her mother put her in the crib. It had taken hours for Kim to finally nod off; and sleep, when it had finally come to her, had been anything but restful as she found herself mired in an awful dream. She bit her lip and closed her eyes as the unbidden memory of her nightmare intruded upon her thoughts.

_She was standing behind the podium, addressing her assembled classmates, when she felt herself being lifted off the stage. "KP! No!" Ron called out as he barreled through the crowd to her and climbed onto the platform._

"_Ron!" she cried, expecting him to grab her outstretched hand. Much to her surprise, though, he did not reach for her. Instead, he straightened his red Smarty Mart vest, which had somehow replaced his black robe, and clasped hands with Tara. What was her BF doing with Tara? Kim wondered. She blinked her eyes in disbelief – and was dumbfounded to see that Tara had disappeared, only to be replaced by Yori._

_Kim didn't understand what was happening. Ron, who was now wearing a black gi and was surrounded by a shimmering blue aura, had wrapped his arm around the lithe young ninja. As Kim was drawn into the underbelly of the great starship, she found her voice. "Why?" she plaintively asked her best friend boyfriend._

"_Hey," Ron, now wearing his football jersey and a crown, answered jauntily as he walked off arm-in-arm with a smirking Bonnie, who wore her homecoming tiara. "You're the one who decided to leave."_

"_What are you talking about?" Kim exclaimed as the giant doors closed beneath her, cutting her off from her BFBF._

Kim took some deep breaths to steady herself. She knew she needed to talk about this. Quietly, she climbed out of her sleeping bag, got up, and left the room.

II.

The last time so many villains had gathered in one place was when Jack Hench offered a free weekend at his new timeshare lair development in the Caribbean. Ironically, the villains were once again on an island. And, also ironically, they were once again going to be forced to listen to a presentation in which they had little interest, though the one they were about to hear would be of far greater consequence to their futures than a real estate sales pitch from the number one supplier of gear and goods to the evil community.

"I am not liking this," Shego said as she looked around the windowless room.

"Tell me about it," Drakken groused. "Midas had just about gotten the kink out of my neck. Now it's back and it hurts like the Dickens!"

Shego groaned as she rolled her eyes. "Doc, focus. Isn't it kind of strange that every single supervillain is here? Dementor, the Seniors …"

"Is Cousin Eddie here?" Drakken asked.

"Back row," Shego said. "Right next to DNAmy …"

Drakken shuddered and Shego smirked. She was about to say something when the air crackled and shimmered, indicating that a force field had been activated. Then a portion of wall on the far side of the energy barrier slid open. A nondescript man, who wore wire-rimmed glasses and had thinning hair, entered, followed by two men dressed in black suits, open-collared white shirts, and aviator-style sunglasses. One of the two men carried a large black case.

The man with thinning hair strode to the podium. "Good evening. I'm Mr. Smith. Welcome to Camp Gamma Ray," he said, his voice devoid of any warmth or emotion.

Frugal Lucre began rubbing his chin. "Gamma ray, gamma ray," he muttered. "Who would name a camp 'Gamma Ray'?" Understanding dawned on the budget bad guy's features. "Oooo! I know!" he said. "It's got a Greek letter in the name. We must be at Gemini's!"

"Lucre, you idiot," said Drakken, who was unable to and uninterested in concealing his exasperation with his one-time protégé. "Why would Global Justice take us to Gemini's lair?"

"Cost sharing?" Lucre suggested. "If Global Justice and the World Wide Evil Empire shared space, they could save a fortune on overhead! Electric bills. Lawn care. Toilet paper costs all cut in half. Just think of the savings!"

Shego slapped her forehead as Duff Killigan, who was sitting behind Lucre, doffed his tam, which he used to smack the former Smarty Mart employee. "Ach, ye annoyin' dipput, Gemini is here, right beside me."

Lucre turned and saw that the leader of the World Wide Evil Empire, a scowl on his face and an excitable Chihuahua in his lap, was indeed sitting next to Killigan.

"Well, if we're not at Gemini's, then where are we?" Lucre wondered.

"We're prisoners at a top-secret military prison," Shego offered.

"We prefer to think of you as mandatory guests and this facility as a total security detention center," Smith said.

"You say tomayto, I say tomahto," Dementor said dismissively. "I am thinking zis is ze hoosegow and I am not liking zat," he added as he crossed his arms and struck a defiant pose.

"That's really not my problem," Smith said.

"You say zat now," Dementor shot back. "But ze smug mug of yours vill be soon be FINISHED, for even as we speak, my loyal henchmen are preparing an assault on ZIS POSITION!"

"I highly doubt it," Smith said blandly. "Given the choice between an attractive buyout plan and being beaten up by Kim Possible on a regular basis, your hired help chose retirement. To a man, I might add …"

"Zis I do not understand," the Teutonic madman said as he rubbed his chin. "I vas sure ze dental und ze company hot tub vould ensure zere loyalty!"

"Admittedly, bennies are nice," Smith agreed. "But it seems everybody's henchmen got tired of being thumped by a cheerleader, though in all fairness I should mention that the WWEE guys did say something about unexpectedly dropping through trapdoors also being a problem."

Gemini fumed while Drakken crossed his arms and furrowed his brow. "Bunch of ungrateful milquetoasts. After all I did for them," the blue-skinned villain grumbled. "Evil family picnics …"

"Doc, can it," Shego said. There was something about the two men with Smith that was making her uneasy; she was sure she'd seen them before and she was convinced their hosts were trouble. Something about the whole situation seemed off to her. It didn't take long for her to realize what it was. "Let me get this straight," she said to Smith. "Global Justice is so incompetent that they've been letting Princess and her dopey sidekick do its work for years. Now, out of nowhere, they find a way to round us all up. What's going down?"

"Survival focuses the mind and brings out the best in people," Smith observed.

"I don't get it," Shego said as she cocked an eyebrow at Smith.

"You don't need to," Smith replied, "though I suspect you will soon enough." Then he gestured to one of his two companions, who withdrew a remote control-like device from his jacket, pressed a button and plunged the room into darkness.

III.

Kim gently knocked on the door to Ron's attic bedroom. "Nana?" she asked quietly, "May I come up?"

"Why of course, Kimberly," the Possible matriarch replied.

Kim climbed the stairs to her BFBF's bedroom and found her grandmother awake and propped up against some pillows, paging through Ron's thrice-read copy of Martin Smarty's autobiography. The teen smiled. "That's Ron's favorite book."

"I can see why. It's a very inspiring story," Nana said as she put down the book. "Did you know that Martin Smarty began his career when he was ten?"

Kim nodded as she immediately recalled the mission to rescue Mr. Smarty, who along with the four other richest people in the world, had been kidnapped by Junior and Shego. The trip to Senior Island not only resulted in the five moguls being freed but in Ron catching Smarty's eye and securing a job at Smarty Mart. Though the mission had taken place less than ten months earlier, it suddenly seemed like a lifetime ago.

"Something's bothering you, dear," Nana said as she saw her granddaughter's expression turn wistful.

"Am I that obvious?" Kim said.

"You have a very expressive face, Kimberly," Nana said as she patted the blanket, indicating that Kim should sit down beside her. "And it is 2:30 in the morning. I can't imagine you came up here to get my lemon square recipe, though given the way Ronald and Rufus ate them this afternoon, that wouldn't be a bad idea."

Kim chuckled. But then her mood darkened.

"Is something wrong with the two of you?" Nana asked gently.

"No," Kim said. "It's just that, well, you see …" she trailed off. She bit her lip and looked away.

Nana sat quietly, knowing her granddaughter would continue when she was ready.

"It's … well, you see …" Kim paused, took a deep breath and said, "Okay, here's the sitch."

Nana listened attentively as Kim recounted her dream. "My dream makes no sense," she concluded. "Ron tried to stop Warhok and Warmonga from taking me away, even if it meant he'd be taken, too. And then he came for me. And, besides, he was the one who was worried that graduation was going to change everything and that we'd break up."

"Kimberly," Nana asked in a gentle voice, "have you given any thought to what's going to happen this fall?"

"Well, I'm going to go to college," she said. "I just don't know where."

"And what about Ronald?"

"He's got his job at Smarty Mart. And I'm sure he'll be going to school, too. I just know it."

Nana nodded. "You've gotten into some wonderful schools all over the world. How do you feel about that?"

Kim sighed. "If you'd asked me a couple of days ago, I would have told you I was ferociously excited."

"But something's changed," Nana observed.

"Yeah," Kim agreed as her shoulders slumped.

"It's awful to be far away from someone you love," Nana observed.

Kim looked at her grandmother, puzzled by her statement.

"You said that to me the other day," Nana explained. "And you were right. Something tells me that your abduction by those aliens has you thinking that going to college in Hong Kong or London won't be appealing if you have to leave Ronald behind. Am I right?"

Kim nodded.

"And you're also afraid that if you go away to school, you may lose Ronald to one of these other girls."

"Well …" Kim said uncomfortably as she realized her grandmother was correct. If she was on the other side of the world and Ron was home in Middleton … Well, out of sight, out of mind.

"Have you and Ronald ever talked about your college plans?"

Kim squirmed.

"Well?" Nana pressed.

"To be honest, I hadn't really focused on college until Mr. Barkin began giving me shrimping brochures," Kim said, much to Nana's confusion. "It's a long story," Kim added before continuing. "You know that Mom and Dad each tried to convince me to go their colleges."

"Oh, yes," Nana said. "Your father was so excited by the idea of you going to MIST."

Kim shrugged. "Rocket science isn't my thing. Neither is medicine. Anyway, Ron and I took our FATs and did a lot of research on colleges."

"And?"

"Ron applied to every school in the country."

"You can't be serious," Nana said disbelievingly.

"He said he was covering his bases," Kim replied with a smirk.

"And you?'

"I thought I should see more of the world, so I focused on schools overseas."

"And what did Ronald think of that?"

"I, well, I didn't tell him until after I'd sent my applications."

"I see," Nana said. "How did he react to this news?"

"He applied to schools in 23 countries," Kim said, suddenly feeling very small as she realized she'd just assumed Ron would accommodate her. "But I got into some great schools here, too!" she added defensively, failing to acknowledge that was because those schools had recruited her, not because she had expanded her pool of potential colleges to be fair to Ron.

Nana sat quietly, looking at her granddaughter. Finally, she asked, "Kimberly, how do you feel about Ronald?"

"What do you mean?" Kim asked, caught off guard by her grandmother's question.

"What are your feelings for Ronald?" Nana replied.

"I love him," Kim said.

"And yet you went ahead and made a major life decision that could lead to the two of you being parted for four years without even consulting him. I find that very interesting."

"Are you saying I don't love him?" Kim asked indignantly.

"No," Nana said. "I'm saying you're a teenager."

"Excuse me?" Kim responded, now clearly confused.

Nana took Kim's hands in hers. "I really am so proud of all you've done. You've helped so many people, been to so many exciting places," she said. "But you're still so young. Just because you've rescued ambassadors doesn't mean you know all there is to being in a relationship. Tell me, why didn't you and Ron talk about college?"

Kim shifted. "I, I don't know," she admitted. "I guess I was scared to think about what was going to happen. I've been on the honor roll since forever and Ron …"

"… Wasn't quite in the running for class valedictorian," Nana said helpfully.

"Something like that," Kim said with an appreciative grin. "Ron never really seemed to think about the future and I was just so excited about being able to go a great university and I guess I just assumed everything would work out. It always has."

"But this time it hasn't?"

"No!" Kim exclaimed in frustration. "Ron's worried that I'm going to go off and do big things and just forget about him, like that would ever happen, and, and …" Kim bit her lip. "And I'm worried that he'll find out he doesn't need me and I'll lose him and it will be all my fault because I wasn't on top of the college sitch for both of us."

Nana was surprised by Kim's last comment. Her expression reflected that and encouraged her granddaughter to continue.

"Ron may not get into college, but he's got one of the five richest men in the world as his mentor. Then there's the whole monkey power thing. He can fight the bad guys without me if he wants. And, and if I go away, what's to stop Tara or Yori or even Bonnie from making a play for him?"

Nana watched the tears begin to flow from Kim's eyes. "Dear …"

"Yes, Nana?" Kim sniffed.

"Get a grip …"

Kim was taken aback by her Nana's blunt suggestion.

"… You're a bright, beautiful, talented young woman. You're not going to lose Ronald. He may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but it's clear he loves you. His only concern after those aliens invaded was getting you back home safely. If the two of you want to make things work out, you will."

"You really think so?" Kim asked hopefully.

"I know so," Nana said as she pulled Kim into a hug. "It may not be easy and you may have to be creative, but you'll find a way to make everything work. Now if you want my advice, you and Ronald should sit down and talk about all this and soon."

"We will," Kim said, now feeling energized. "Promise me you'll give me more spankin' advice the next time I freak?"

"Of course, dear."

"You rock, Nana."

Grandmother and granddaughter sat quietly, happy to be visiting with one another after so many months. They were enjoying one another's company when a blood-curdling scream rang through the house. The color drained from Kim's face as she recognized its source. "Ron!" she exclaimed, as she bolted from the bed and hurried down the stairs.

IV.

The lighting was restored. All eyes were focused on the man who had inadvertently sent the windowless room into an artificial night. "Sorry, my bad," he said before he looked at his device, nodded to himself, and pressed another button: this time a panel opened in the ceiling allowing a large screen to be lowered. Then he pressed a third button and a projector was deployed.

"Ooo! Ooo!" Frugal Lucre enthused. "A movie! And it's free! Does anyone have popcorn?"

"Lucre," Drakken hissed.

"Vould somebody tell me vhat iss going on here?" Dementor demanded.

"I was about to do just that," Smith replied phlegmatically. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for you to learn about an exciting new career path. Smith, you can turn the lights off now."

The room once again fell into darkness and the projector came to life. Patriotic music played and the Great Seal of the United States appeared on the screen, followed by a logo nobody recognized. Superimposed on the unfamiliar emblem were the words "Your Future with Improbable Heroes Opportunity Program, an equal opportunity employer."

"Father, what is an employer?" Junior whispered.

"Lame-o," Shego muttered as she discerned the acronym that could be formed from the agency's name.

The title screen faded and the patriotic tunes came to an end. Ominous music began, accompanied by a series of images of the destruction caused by Drakken's Diablo attack, the havoc wrought by Dementor's mutant chrysanthemums, and the aftermath of Killigan's grass-seeding escapade in Tokyo two years earlier. Interspersed throughout was footage of the Lorwardian invasion.

"I.H.O.P.," the announcer declared, "was very recently established by Executive Order to harness the creative talent of our nation's most innovative inventors, leaders, and scientists to advance the national interest and fight America's enemies. By joining I.H.O.P., you have the power to change history."

This time, only images of the Lorwardian invasion appeared. The screen then went black for a moment before the smiling visage of President Lyle Lott sitting behind his desk in the Oval Office appeared.

"I want to thank each and every one of you for considering your government's invitation to join the I.H.O.P. team," Lott said. "The American people are grateful for your willingness to serve the greater good at a time when we face such grave peril. I know you'll make the right choice."

Lott's image faded away and was replaced by that of the Stars and Stripes, waving in the wind and bathed in golden sunlight, while Kate Smith's classic rendition of "God Bless America" played. The film then ended and the lights came on.

"Ooo! That was incredible!" Lucre gushed. "I can't wait to see the sequel!"

Shego groaned and then raised her hand.

"Yes?" Smith said in acknowledgment.

"What do we get other than a warm fuzzy feeling for doing whatever it is Lott has in mind if we play ball?"

"Full pardons for any and all crimes you may have committed in the Unites States or its possessions, health, dental, six weeks of vacation plus Federal holidays, and a competitive 401(k) plan."

"Und if ve don't join, you vill send us back to ze pokey," Dementor surmised.

"So you can escape again? I don't think so," Smith replied. "No, we'll just arrange for some attitude adjustment." He nodded towards Smith who brought over the large case he'd carried into the room. Smith removed the container's lid and withdrew a black helmet emblazoned with an "H" and sporting what looked like vacuum tubes on either side.

"Look familiar?" Smith asked as he directed his gaze at Drakken and Shego, knowing each had already been subjected to the device. "It's amazing what a little reverse engineering can do. We've been able to turn this entire room into one giant Attitudinator. All I have to do is flip a switch after we leave and you'll all be the most insipidly happy, helpful people in the world."

"You big meanie!" DNAmy wailed in horror.

"This is totally bogus," Motor Ed complained. "Seriously."

"Father, will this Attitudinator thingie ruin my hair?" Junior asked.

Senor Senior sighed as he looked at his son. He then shifted his gaze to Smith. "You are most diabolical," the billionaire observed, unable to hide his admiration for the man.

"Thank you," Smith replied with a slight nod of the head. "I know this is a big decision for each of you," he added. "Why don't you take a few moments to think it over?" Accompanied by Smith and Smith, Smith then exited the room, leaving the villains to contemplate their futures.

* * *

_TBC …_


	7. Convo in the Kitchen

Thanks to Mr. Wizard, whitem, Samurai Crunchbird, screaming phoenix, Josh84, Comet Moon, campy, Kwebs, johnrie18, Lon Wolfgood, Eddy13, Boris Yeltsin, CajunBear73, daywalkr82, Michael Howard, Jason Barnett, Danny-171984, Molloy, .ninja, RonHeartbreaker, LTAOZFAN, and Aero Tendo for reviewing and to everyone for reading.

Special thanks to campy for his beta and proofreading assistance.

Leave a review and I'll send you a response.

KP, RS et. al. © Disney

* * *

Kim flew down the stairs, driven by concern for her boyfriend. Her foot barely touched the floor as she turned the corner to head through the kitchen to the garage – and plowed into Ron, who was racing in her direction. One hundred and five pounds of world-saving cheerleader collided with one hundred fifty pounds of naco-eating monkey master. The two teens fell to the floor in a tangle of limbs. Momentarily stunned, they each took a moment to recover, then looked at one another with concern.

"Are you okay?" both asked before Kim, not missing a beat, added, "Jinx! You owe me a soda."

"Aw man, my mystical monkey power finally kicks in and I still can't win," Ron sulked.

Kim smiled smugly at her boyfriend and shrugged. Still sitting on the kitchen floor, she reached out to him, and took his hands in hers. "So, what's the sitch?," she asked. "Did you have a bad dream?" She was unsettled as his eyes took on a faraway, haunted cast and the color drained from his face. "Ron, you're weirding me out," she said, her worry mounting. "Spill, now."

Ron replied by pulling Kim into a fierce hug. "You're not stuffed and mounted to the wall," he said.

"Excuse me?" she asked, wondering if Ron had been snacking on spicy, crunchy Tex-Mex food before he'd gone to bed.

"You, you're okay," he said, his voice filled with relief.

"Ron, you're not making sense," Kim said. She tightened her embrace as she realized he was trembling and breathing raggedly. "Take a deep breath and relax."

He struggled to do as she requested. When he felt he had, he pulled back, carefully cupped his girlfriend's cheeks with his large hands and looked into her eyes.

"You have the most beautilicious eyes," he whispered.

"I thought that was Penny," Kim said playfully.

"Nah," he said softly. "That was last season."

Kim smiled, relieved that Ron seemed to have settled down. "So, you mind sitching us?" she asked, using the plural as it appeared that Ron's scream had awakened everyone save Hana and Rufus. Four parents, one grandparent, and two tweebs had all come to investigate.

Ron ignored everyone save Kim and continued to hold her gaze. "They'd replaced your eyes with glass ones …"

Kim grimaced. "I so didn't need to hear that," she said before adding, "So, nightmare?"

Ron nodded. "Sorry, KP," he said apologetically. "It's just, well," he said as he began rubbing his neck, "they'd stuffed and mounted you."

"Warhok and Warmonga," she guessed.

Ron nodded again.

"Well, as you can see, they didn't," Kim said reassuringly.

"Yeah, but they threatened to," Ron said with surprising emotion. "And if I hadn't gotten my monkey mojo …"

"Ron, it was just a dream," Kim said. "Admittedly, a ferociously gorchy, greechy dream, but still just a dream."

"But it could have happened," Ron protested, eliciting a look of curiosity from Kim. "After you were knocked out, Warhok really said he'd do that. And it was because of me."

It pained and angered Kim to see Ron's guilt-ridden expression. "We've been over this," she said. "You had my back and stopped the bad guys. That's all that matters to me."

"Pretty words, KP," he said disconsolately. "But you could have been killed. Because of me."

Kim sighed. "Ron …"

It was clear to anyone who knew Kim that she was about to give her boyfriend the advice she had received from her grandmother earlier in the evening: she was going to tell him to get a grip. Before Kim said anything, however she caught a glimpse of Nana, who was shaking her head. The teen correctly sensed that the Possible family matriarch was silently advising her to not dismiss Ron's fears. Kim nodded, almost imperceptibly, and let her grandmother know she'd received and understood her message.

"Okay, Ron," Kim said. "You're right. What you did was so flawed …"

Ron cringed. "I'm sorry," he mumbled. "I didn't mean to put you in danger."

"… Did you even think how I'd react after Warhok had flattened you?"

"Okay, you've lost me," Ron said, his attention fully engaged by the unexpected turn in the conversation.

"That's exactly the problem," Kim said. "I could have lost you. Did you have any idea what you were doing when you picked that fight?"

The Stoppables, Possibles, and Nana, all having had serious relationship discussions, sensed one was in the offing for Kim and Ron and decided it was time to leave the teens alone. Jim and Tim, too, seeing their father's expression, joined the adults in leaving the room, even if it meant not hearing any more about fierce aliens and epic space battles.

Ron, meanwhile, squirmed.

"I didn't think so," Kim, unable to hide a knowing smirk, said before she reached up and brushed her fingers against Ron's cheeks. "Don't get me wrong. You were incredibly brave. But the last thing I remember thinking before I was knocked out was that I was going to lose you. It was bad enough when they kidnapped me. At least I was able to tell myself that you'd come after me. But when I imagined what might happen if you got into a fight with Warhok after seeing the way he backhanded Shego …" Kim bit her lip, frowned and looked away.

"I'm sorry, KP," he said softly.

Kim turned back to Ron, her eyes glistening. "You don't know just how much you mean to me, Ron, though, to be honest, until the last few days I didn't know."

"Huh?"

"Do you remember when you freaked on me at Bueno Nacho?"

"C'mon, KP, I didn't freak. Exactly. I only sort of freaked."

"Ron, you stopped speaking in sentences. Sounds freakish to me."

"Okay, I freaked," he conceded. "So?"

"Well, after I went home, I kind of found myself freaking, too."

"Really?"

Kim nodded. "All of a sudden, I was thinking about the fall and how we might wind up in different places. And I didn't like that. I was so angry."

"I thought the college admissions people would overlook my gradage," Ron said apologetically, "me being a football star and helping you save the world and everything. I'm sorry didn't work harder, KP."

"I am too," Kim said sternly. Ron's study habits – or lack thereof – had long been a point of concern for her, one she had made no effort to conceal. "But that's so not the point."

"No?"

"No," Kim said. "I should have encouraged you to work harder."

"Maybe," Ron said, "but I'm not a baby. I should have taken some of that stuff more seriously. Anyways, you still get mad points on the encouragement front: if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be Martin Smarty's main man."

"Fine, be that way," Kim said, giving Ron a playful pout which earned a grin from Ron. "Still," she continued, her demeanor serious again, "I should have been more thoughtful about the whole college application sitch. I didn't even talk with you about where I was applying."

"Admittedly, it would have been more convenient if you had," Ron said as he recalled the thousands of applications he'd submitted, grateful he'd been able to file them electronically. "But, well," he continued, looking uncomfortable. "Why would you? This is your future we're talking about."

"You are, too," Kim said.

"I am?" Ron replied, stunned.

"Yes, you are," Kim said. "And I don't ever want you to forget that," she said as she embraced him. "I love you so much. And sometimes it scares me."

"I'd be scared if I loved me," he quipped.

"Trying to be serious here," she said.

"I know," Ron said. "And as the guy I'm trying to avoid that. You know it's against the code for us to talk about our feelings."

Kim pulled back and cocked an eyebrow at Ron. "The last time you decided not to talk about your feelings you almost lost me to a synthodrone."

"Oh, fine, go ahead," Ron said with mock indignation. "Bring up facts."

Kim grinned with satisfaction. "I'll remember to quote you on that."

"Oh no you don't! You can't use my words against me!"

"Check my motto lately?" Kim said. "I can do anything."

"Even love a goofy sidekick like me?"

"Especially that," Kim said. "But only if you promise not to keep picking fights with nine-foot-tall aliens."

"Promise with an escape clause," Ron said as he placed his hand on his heart.

"Excuse me?" Kim asked.

"That promise only counts as long as the aliens aren't trying to hurt you. Nobody beats up on Ron Stoppable's GF."

"Okay," she said. "On one condition."

"Condition?" he asked.

"Yes," Kim said quietly. "Tell me what exactly happened this morning. To you. To them."

* * *

_To Be Continued …_


	8. Still So Not the End of the World

_June 2062_

The old man sat quietly, motionless, looking at something that wasn't there, inhabiting a place and time far away.

"Grandpa?"

Ron Stoppable, shaken from his reverie, turned and grinned sheepishly at his inquisitive, engaging granddaughter Annie. The young woman so resembled the seventeen year-old Kim Possible that, had she not had freckles and brown eyes, one might have thought her a clone of the one-time teen hero.

"Sorry," he said.

"It's okay," his granddaughter said indulgently as she took his large hand in far smaller one. "So, what happened?"

Ron looked off again. "Nothing."

"Nothing?" Annie asked. "What do you mean?"

Ron returned his gaze to his granddaughter. "I was scared and I don't mean the usual Ron Stoppable kind of we-may-be-running-out-of-nacos-and-there's-a-blizzard-coming scared."

"Why were you scared?"

"Because I was worried that your grandmother would think I was some sort of freak or bad guy because of what I did to Warhok and Warmonga."

A derisive snort alerted grandfather and granddaughter that they had company. Standing in the doorway was a trim, elderly woman with short yet stylish gray hair, laugh lines around her large green eyes and what could only be described as a loving smirk.

"As usual, your grandfather was overreacting," Kim Stoppable said as she sat down next to her husband and affectionately ruffled the little hair he still had on his head.

"I was not overreacting," Ron protested.

"You were so overreacting," Kim said as she leaned in and gave him a buss on the cheek. "I told you that nothing was going to come between us."

"Yeah, I know," he said. "Still …"

"Ron thought I was going to dump him because of what happened to Warhok and Warmonga."

"KP was always about not hurting the bad guys," Ron explained. "And well, I'd …"

"Saved my life and saved the world," Kim said flatly. "There was no way I was going to dump him though I did ask him not ignore his feelings about what happened."

"Man, did we spend a lot of time talking with Rabbi Katz," Ron mused.

"I wish you could have met him," Kim said to her granddaughter. "He was a ferociously good man."

"Grandpa, do you mind my asking what you hoped would happen when you threw those aliens into their ship?" Annie asked Ron.

"Honestly? I really hadn't given it much thought. I just tossed them and, uh, hoped they'd go away."

"Go away?" she asked incredulously.

"Pretty much," he answered with a shrug. "It's not like I was aiming or anything. I just wanted to get them away from Kim. It was just coincidence that they hit the ship."

"Once again," Kim said with a chuckle, "The Ron Factor saved the day."

"The Ron Factor does not save the day," Ron declared. "That's the Kim Factor's job. I just spice things up."

"Not that day," Kim said. "If you hadn't gone all monkey, I'd have been a trophy on Warmonga's wall."

"Talk about so the drama," their granddaughter said.

"So so the drama," Kim agreed. "Fortunately, as usual, your grandfather had my back."

"Hey, it's what we sidekicks do," Ron preened.

Kim rolled her eyes again. "You are not a sidekick. You're a partner."

"Maybe," Ron said. "But you have to admit, nobody could sidekick like me."

"True," she agreed. "When it comes to losing your pants, you're most definitely in a league of your own."

"I thought you liked it when I lost my pants," Ron said with a leer.

"TMI!" Annie interrupted, waving her hands theatrically, earning hearty laughter from her two grandparents, who could each remember what it was like to be a teen confronted with the reality that adult relations could and did smack lips and more.

"Well," Ron said as he stretched his arms and yawned, "I think it's time for the Rondo to hit the sack."

"Me too," Kim agreed. "I want to be well rested for the big day tomorrow" she said as rose from the couch and took Ron's hand, helping her husband to his feet.

"Thanks for coming to my graduation," Annie said as she rose and embraced her grandparents.

"We wouldn't have missed it for anything," Kim said before she took her husband's hand. "Shall we?"

"You got it, KP," Ron said. "Night, Annie."

"Good night, Grandpa, Grandma."

"We're very proud of you," Kim said softly as she kissed Annie on the cheek. "We're looking forward to your speech tomorrow."

"It's nothing big," Annie said.

"It so is," Kim said. "You're the valedictorian!"

"Well …" Annie said, blushing.

"You'll do fine," Kim said reassuringly. "Just remember to relax and focus on two or three people in the crowd."

"That's easy for you to say," Annie replied. "You used to testify before Congress and appear on TV on a regular basis."

"She's got you there, Kim," Ron said. "Being Director of Global Justice did give you mad presentation skills."

"Not helping," Kim said playfully.

"Gotcha," he said. "How about I remind our bon-diggety granddaughter that she's not just a Stoppable, but a Possible and we all know that anything is possible for a Possible, including giving a badical speech."

"Thanks, Grandpa."

Kim smiled at Ron and then returned to her attention to Annie. "You'll be great," she said as she took the teen's hands in hers.

"You're sure?" Annie said.

"So sure," Kim said reassuringly. "After all, I've been through graduation and I can tell you that no matter what happens, it's so not the end of the world!"

* * *

KP © Disney; Original characters © the Author

Leave a review and I'll send a reply.

* * *

On April 28, 2009 I posted the following message to my readers:

"After much consideration, I have decided that I will not be continuing _So Not the End of the World_. The time I now have available for writing fan fiction is limited, and I do not believe that this story, which I last updated eleven months ago, is the best place to invest my creative energies. As I have never cared for uncompleted stories, I plan to remove this one from the site on Friday, May 1.

"For those who wonder what will come next, I plan to complete _Law and Disorder_. I will then turn to a new story that I have been plotting for some time.

"To those of you who have reviewed _So Not the End of the World_ and to everyone who has read, I offer my thanks."

Since posting this message a number of readers have asked me to reconsider my decision. While I still won't be resuming this story I have decided not to remove it from the site. However, since my feelings about uncompleted stories remain unchanged, I was faced with a small dilemma: what to do as the action had left off in the midst of a conversation between Kim and Ron. My solution was this chapter, which while not truly completing _So Not the End of the World_, hopefully provides it with an ending.


End file.
